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Brain Signal Variability During Rest as a Neural Mechanism Underlying Cognitive Reserve
Annabell Coors1, Yaakov Stern2, Christian Habeck2
1Cognitive Neuroscience Division, Department of Neurology, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic Medicine, University Medical Center Halle, Halle (Saale), Germany; Leibniz Institute for Resilience Research, Mainz, Germany; German Center for Mental Health (DZPG), Site Halle-Jena-Magdeburg, Halle (Saale), Germany.
Brain signal variability is linked to cognitive reserve (CR), which helps maintain cognitive function with age. This study shows how brain signal variability patterns relate to CR across different cognitive domains.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Science
- Aging Research
Background:
- Resting-state brain signal variability changes with age and cognitive ability.
- Neural flexibility is proposed as a mechanism for cognitive reserve (CR).
- CR describes cognition better than expected given brain status.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the associations between age, resting-state brain signal variability, and CR.
- To determine if brain signal variability patterns explain cognitive performance beyond other factors.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of resting-state functional neuroimaging data from 470 participants (ages 20-80).
- Quantification of brain signal variability using log-transformed standard deviation of blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) signals.
- Application of Scaled Subprofile Modelling principal component analysis to derive variability patterns related to cognition and age.
Main Results:
- Cognition-related brain variability patterns were associated with CR in episodic memory, fluid reasoning, and vocabulary.
- These patterns explained 10.5%-18.3% of the variance in cognitive performance.
- Some cognition-related variability patterns inversely mirrored age-related patterns in specific brain regions.
Conclusions:
- BOLD signal variability is implicated in the aging process.
- Brain signal variability underlies cognitive reserve in key cognitive domains.
- Findings highlight the role of neural flexibility in maintaining cognitive function across the lifespan.
