Open AccessPrediction of brain age and cognitive age: Quantifying brain and cognitive maintenance in aging
Author(s) -
Anatürk Melis,
Kaufmann Tobias,
Cole James H.,
Suri Sana,
Griffanti Ludovica,
Zsoldos Enikő,
Filippini Nicola,
SinghManoux Archana,
Kivimäki Mika,
Westlye Lars T.,
Ebmeier Klaus P.,
Lange AnnMarie G.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
human brain mapping
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.005
H-Index - 191
eISSN - 1097-0193
pISSN - 1065-9471
DOI - 10.1002/hbm.25316
Subject(s) - cognition , cognitive reserve , psychology , cognitive decline , aging brain , normative , brain aging , effects of sleep deprivation on cognitive performance , cohort , cognitive skill , developmental psychology , gerontology , neuroscience , medicine , dementia , cognitive impairment , disease , philosophy , epistemology , pathology
Abstract The concept of brain maintenance refers to the preservation of brain integrity in older age, while cognitive reserve refers to the capacity to maintain cognition in the presence of neurodegeneration or aging‐related brain changes. While both mechanisms are thought to contribute to individual differences in cognitive function among older adults, there is currently no “gold standard” for measuring these constructs. Using machine‐learning methods, we estimated brain and cognitive age based on deviations from normative aging patterns in the Whitehall II MRI substudy cohort ( N = 537, age range = 60.34–82.76), and tested the degree of correspondence between these constructs, as well as their associations with premorbid IQ, education, and lifestyle trajectories. In line with established literature highlighting IQ as a proxy for cognitive reserve, higher premorbid IQ was linked to lower cognitive age independent of brain age. No strong evidence was found for associations between brain or cognitive age and lifestyle trajectories from midlife to late life based on latent class growth analyses. However, post hoc analyses revealed a relationship between cumulative lifestyle measures and brain age independent of cognitive age. In conclusion, we present a novel approach to characterizing brain and cognitive maintenance in aging, which may be useful for future studies seeking to identify factors that contribute to brain preservation and cognitive reserve mechanisms in older age.