Plasma and serum BDNF differentially relate to fNIRS prefrontal cortex activity during executive function and memory...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Science
• Biochemistry

Background:

• Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) is crucial for memory and synaptic plasticity.
• Its role in the prefrontal cortex and differences between plasma (pBDNF) and serum (sBDNF) are not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate differential relationships between pBDNF and sBDNF with prefrontal cortex activity.
• To examine associations with executive function and episodic memory tasks.

Main Methods:

• Twenty-three participants provided blood samples and completed cognitive tasks over 12 weeks.
• Prefrontal cortex activity was measured using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS).

Main Results:

• pBDNF positively correlated with episodic memory performance and prefrontal cortex activity.
• pBDNF also associated with neural activity during inhibition and attention tasks.
• sBDNF showed limited associations with neural activity, not cognitive performance.

Conclusions:

• pBDNF may support prefrontal cortex functions in episodic memory.
• Differential associations suggest distinct bioavailabilities of pBDNF and sBDNF pools.
• Findings have implications for future mechanistic studies on BDNF and cognition.