Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 6, 2026

Symmetric Bihemispheric Postmortem Brain Cutting to Study Healthy and Pathological Brain Conditions in Humans
Published on: December 18, 2016
Theoretical and practical challenges for capturing reserve and resilience in aging and Alzheimer's disease: A
Valentin Ourry1,2, Maude Wagner3,4, Colin Groot5
1Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Canada.
Abstract:
The concepts of reserve and resilience in aging and Alzheimer's disease (AD) are widely used but their operationalization remains challenging and often lacks conceptual and methodological consistency. In this narrative review, we describe the chronological history of these concepts and then summarize and discuss key theoretical and practical issues, along with proposed solutions and different perspectives, in the context of aging and AD. Theoretical challenges include risk versus protective factors, dynamic brain and cognitive trajectories, overestimation of resilience and inflection points. Practical challenges include proxy measures, study designs, residual approaches, and influential cases. We highlight the need for greater methodological harmonization, improved validation of proxy, and lifespan longitudinal approaches. Addressing these challenges will strengthen interpretability, reproducibility, and causal inference, ultimately facilitating the translation of reserve and resilience research into preventive and therapeutic strategies.
Related Concept Videos
Alzheimer's Disease: Overview
The clinical diagnosis of AD hinges on the presence of memory and other cognitive impairments. Biomarkers, such as changes in Aβ and tau...
Alzheimer Disease l: Introduction
Dementia l: Introduction
Aging
Cellular Clock Theory
The cellular clock theory posits that the human lifespan is closely tied to the finite capacity of cells to divide, a phenomenon governed by telomeres, which are protective caps at the ends of...
Alzheimer's Disease: Treatment
Alzheimer Disease ll: Pathophysiology
