| 1. |
- Karalija, Nina, 1984-, et al.
(författare)
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A common polymorphism in the dopamine transporter gene predicts working memory performance and in vivo dopamine integrity in aging
- 2021
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Ingår i: NeuroImage. - : Elsevier BV. - 1053-8119 .- 1095-9572. ; 245
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Dopamine (DA) integrity is suggested as a potential cause of individual differences in working memory (WM) performance among older adults. Still, the principal dopaminergic mechanisms giving rise to WM differences remain unspecified. Here, 61 single-nucleotide polymorphisms, located in or adjacent to various dopamine-related genes, were assessed for their links to WM performance in a sample of 1313 adults aged 61–80 years from the Berlin Aging Study II. Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO) regression was conducted to estimate associations between polymorphisms and WM. Rs40184 in the DA transporter gene, SLC6A3, showed allelic group differences in WM, with T-carriers performing better than C homozygotes (p<0.01). This finding was replicated in an independent sample from the Cognition, Brain, and Aging study (COBRA; baseline: n = 181, ages: 64–68 years; 5-year follow up: n = 129). In COBRA, in vivo DA integrity was measured with 11C-raclopride and positron emission tomography. Notably, WM as well as in vivo DA integrity was higher for rs40184 T-carriers at baseline (p<0.05 for WM and caudate and hippocampal D2-receptor availability) and at the 5-year follow-up (p<0.05 for WM and hippocampal D2 availability). Our findings indicate that individual differences in DA transporter function contribute to differences in WM performance in old age, presumably by regulating DA availability.
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| 2. |
- Karalija, Nina, 1984-, et al.
(författare)
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Cardiovascular factors are related to dopamine integrity and cognition in aging
- 2019
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Ingår i: Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology. - : Wiley-Blackwell. - 2328-9503. ; 6:11, s. 2291-2303
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: The aging brain undergoes several changes, including reduced vascular, structural, and dopamine (DA) system integrity. Such brain changes have been associated with age‐related cognitive deficits. However, their relative importance, interrelations, and links to risk factors remain elusive.Methods: The present work used magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography with 11C‐raclopride to jointly examine vascular parameters (white‐matter lesions and perfusion), DA D2‐receptor availability, brain structure, and cognitive performance in healthy older adults (n = 181, age: 64–68 years) from the Cognition, Brain, and Aging (COBRA) study.Results: Covariance was found among several brain indicators, where top predictors of cognitive performance included caudate and hippocampal integrity (D2DR availability and volumes), and cortical blood flow and regional volumes. White‐matter lesion burden was negatively correlated with caudate DA D2‐receptor availability and white‐matter microstructure. Compared to individuals with smaller lesions, individuals with confluent lesions (exceeding 20 mm in diameter) had reductions in cortical and hippocampal perfusion, striatal and hippocampal D2‐receptor availability, white‐matter microstructure, and reduced performance on tests of episodic memory, sequence learning, and processing speed. Higher cardiovascular risk as assessed by treatment for hypertension, systolic blood pressure, overweight, and smoking was associated with lower frontal cortical perfusion, lower putaminal D2DR availability, smaller grey‐matter volumes, a larger number of white‐matter lesions, and lower episodic memory performance.Interpretation: Taken together, these findings suggest that reduced cardiovascular health is associated with poorer status for brain variables that are central to age‐sensitive cognitive functions, with emphasis on DA integrity.
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| 3. |
- Karalija, Nina, 1984-, et al.
(författare)
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Longitudinal Dopamine D2 Receptor Changes and Cerebrovascular Health in Aging
- 2022
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Ingår i: Neurology. - 1526-632X .- 0028-3878. ; 99
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Cross-sectional studies suggest marked dopamine (DA) decline in aging, but longitudinal evidence is lacking. The aim of this study was to estimate within-person decline rates for DA D2-like receptors (DRD2) in aging and examine factors that may contribute to individual differences in DRD2 decline rates. METHODS: We investigated 5-year within-person changes in DRD2 availability in a sample of older adults. At both occasions, PET with 11C-raclopride and MRI were used to measure DRD2 availability in conjunction with structural and vascular brain integrity. RESULTS: Longitudinal analyses of the sample (baseline: n = 181, ages: 64-68 years, 100 men and 81 women; 5-year follow-up: n = 129, 69 men and 60 women) revealed aging-related striatal and extrastriatal DRD2 decline, along with marked individual differences in rates of change. Notably, the magnitude of striatal DRD2 decline was ∼50% of past cross-sectional estimates, suggesting that the DRD2 decline rate has been overestimated in past cross-sectional studies. Significant DRD2 reductions were also observed in select extrastriatal regions, including hippocampus, orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). Distinct profiles of correlated DRD2 changes were found across several associative regions (ACC, dorsal striatum, and hippocampus) and in the reward circuit (nucleus accumbens and OFC). DRD2 losses in associative regions were associated with white matter lesion progression, whereas DRD2 losses in limbic regions were related to reduced cortical perfusion. DISCUSSION: These findings provide the first longitudinal evidence for individual and region-specific differences of DRD2 decline in older age and support the hypothesis that cerebrovascular factors are linked to age-related dopaminergic decline.
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| 4. |
- Köhncke, Ylva
(författare)
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Lifestyle, cognitive aging, and brain correlates
- 2017
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Inter-individual differences in level and rate of cognitive decline typically seen in aging have been linked to inter-individual differences in lifestyle factors such as leisure activities, including physical activity. The general aim of this thesis was to further our understanding of how and why leisure activity engagement is related to aging-related changes in cognitive performance. Specifically, we sought to (a) identify lifestyle components that are associated with late-life cognitive performance, (b) identify brain correlates of these lifestyle components that are also relevant for cognitive performance, and (c) explore the relative importance of lifestyle- and health-related factors for predicting cognitive change, as well as interactive effects among these factors. In Study I and II, we investigated associations between 3-year changes in leisure activities and concurrent changes in cognitive performance and white matter microstructure in 563 (Study I) and 442 (Study II) participants aged 81 years and older. Study I documented changes in white matter microstructure in the corticospinal (CS) tract to be associated with changes in perceptual speed. In Study II, we observed that concurrent change in frequency of engagement in social activities (e.g. going out to eat in a restaurant, going to the movies, concerts, or the theater) was related to change in both white matter microstructure in the CS tract and in perceptual speed. Change in white matter microstructure in the CS tract statistically accounted for the association between changes in frequency of social leisure activities and perceptual speed. In Study III, we turned to D2/3 dopamine receptor (D2/3DR) availability as a potential brain correlate of lifestyle and cognition in aging. We investigated D2/3DR availability, cognitive performance, and physical activity in 178 healthy adults aged 64-67 years. Participants completed tests of working memory, episodic memory, and processing speed, and a leisure activity questionnaire. Subjective intensity, but not frequency, across the activities each individual performed was associated with D2/3DR availability in caudate nucleus as well as with episodic and working memory. Episodic memory was also related to D2/3DR availability in the caudate, forming a correlative triad with physical activity intensity and caudate D2/3DR availability. In Study IV, we applied a new data-mining technique called structural equation modelling trees and forests to investigate the relative importance of leisure activity engagement, physical activity, and other age- and health-related factors in predicting subsequent 6-year change in perceptual speed in 1046 participants aged 60 years and older. With regard to variable importance, a measure that subsumes main effects and interactions among predictors, frequency of leisure activities was not unimportant, although less important than age, retirement status, walking speed, and multimorbidity. Conceivably, the association between leisure activity engagement and subsequent cognitive decline is conditional upon age- and health-related factors included in the current analyses. Regarding aim (a), identifying lifestyle components related to cognitive aging, we identified change in social activities to be related to change in perceptual speed (Study II). We also found that subjective intensity, but not frequency, of physical activity was related to episodic and working memory (Study III). Regarding the relative importance of frequency of leisure activity engagement as a predictor of change in cognition, we observed some importance of all types of activities, except for physical activity, in predicting change in perceptual speed (Study IV). Concerning aim (b), identifying brain correlates of lifestyle components and cognitive performance, we observed white matter microstructural changes to be related to changes in both leisure activity and perceptual speed (Study II), and D2/3DR availability (Study III) to be related to both subjective physical activity intensity and episodic memory. Regarding aim (c), exploring the relative importance of lifestyle components as predictors of subsequent cognitive decline (Study IV), we found rather small effects of the lifestyle components investigated in Studies II and III, but still found leisure activities to be informative as predictors when using a data-mining approach that takes interactive effects with other predictors into account. The studies in this thesis contribute with new data on associations between lifestyle and cognitive aging, and on brain measures correlated with these two factors. Specifically, we are the first to show parallel changes in leisure activity, white matter microstructure, and perceptual speed. We are also the first to observe an association between physical activity intensity and D2/3DR availability. In sum, the present results indicate that engaging in social activities in very late life and physical activity intensity around retirement age are related to cognitive performance and associated brain parameters. Although the issue of causal directionality remains unresolved, leisure activities are correlates and informative predictors of cognitive decline.
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| 5. |
- Köhncke, Ylva, et al.
(författare)
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Self-rated intensity of habitual physical activities is positively associated with dopamine D-2/3 receptor availability and cognition
- 2018
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Ingår i: NeuroImage. - : Elsevier BV. - 1053-8119 .- 1095-9572. ; 181, s. 605-616
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Between-person differences in cognitive performance in older age are associated with variations in physical activity. The neurotransmitter dopamine (DA) contributes to cognitive performance, and the DA system deteriorates with advancing age. Animal data and a patient study suggest that physical activity modulates DA receptor availability, but data from healthy humans are lacking. In a cross-sectional study with 178 adults aged 64-68 years, we investigated links among self-reported physical activity, D(2/3)DA receptor (D2/3DR) availability, and cognitive performance. D2/3DR availability was measured with [C-11]raclopride positron emission tomography at rest. We used structural equation modeling to obtain latent factors for processing speed, episodic memory, working memory, physical activity, and D2/3DR availability in caudate, putamen, and hippocampus. Physical activity intensity was positively associated with D2/3DR availability in caudate, but not putamen and hippocampus. Frequency of physical activity was not related to D2/3DR availability. Physical activity intensity was positively related to episodic memory and working memory. D2/3DR availability in caudate and hippocampus was positively related to episodic memory. Taken together, our results suggest that striatal DA availability might be a neurochemical correlate of episodic memory that is also associated with physical activity.
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| 6. |
- Köhncke, Ylva, et al.
(författare)
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Three-year changes in leisure activities are associated with concurrent changes in white matter microstructure and perceptual speed in individuals aged 80 years and older
- 2016
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Ingår i: Neurobiology of Aging. - : Elsevier BV. - 0197-4580 .- 1558-1497. ; 41, s. 173-186
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Accumulating evidence suggests that engagement in leisure activities is associated with favorable trajectories of cognitive aging, but little is known about brain changes related to both activities and cognition. White matter microstructure shows experience-dependent plasticity and declines in aging. Therefore, we investigated the role of change in white matter microstructure in the activities-cognition link. We used repeated assessments of engagement, perceptual speed, and white matter microstructure (probed with diffusion tensor imaging) in a population-based sample of individuals over 80 years without dementia (n = 442, M-age = 85.1; n = 70 for diffusion tensor imaging; 2 occasions 3 years apart). Using multivariate latent change modeling, we observed positive correlations among changes in predominantly social activities, white matter microstructure, and perceptual speed. Interindividual differences in change in white matter microstructure statistically accounted for the association between change in leisure activities and change in perceptual speed. However, as analyses are based on observational data from 2 measurement occasions, causality remains unclear.
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| 7. |
- Laukka, Erika J., et al.
(författare)
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Combined Genetic Influences on Episodic Memory Decline in Older Adults Without Dementia
- 2020
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Ingår i: Neuropsychology. - : American Psychological Association (APA). - 0894-4105 .- 1931-1559. ; 34:6, s. 654-666
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: Although heritability explains a large proportion of the variance in old-age cognition, studies on the influence of specific genes have been inconclusive. We investigated the individual and combined effects of four single polymorphisms, previously associated with episodic memory, on cognitive or performance and rate of change. Method: Participants were 2490 individuals without dementia (mean age = 72 years) from the population-based Swedish National Study on Aging and Care in Kungsholmen (SNAC-K). Genotyping was performed for APOE (rs429358, rs7412), BDNF (rs6265), KIBRA (rs17070145), and CLSTN2 (rs6439886). We used latent difference score models to estimate the effects of age and genetic variation on level and change in five latent cognitive factors: episodic and semantic memory, letter and category fluency, and perceptual speed. Results: Of the individual genes, only APOE was associated with cognitive performance; epsilon 4 carriers showed lower perceptual speed performance and faster category fluency decline. A cumulative score, combining APOE, BDNF, KIBRA and CLSTN2, was associated with faster cognitive decline that was specific to the episodic memory domain (regression coefficient -0.064, p < .01). Similar results were obtained for a score not including APOE. Conclusions: Results suggest a benefit of investigating the combined influence of polymorphisms related to specific mechanistic factors.
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| 8. |
- Lövdén, Martin, et al.
(författare)
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Changes in perceptual speed and white matter microstructure in the corticospinal tract are associated in very old age
- 2014
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Ingår i: NeuroImage. - : Elsevier. - 1053-8119 .- 1095-9572. ; 102, s. 520-530
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The integrity of the brain's white matter is important for neural processing and displays age-related differences, but the contribution of changes in white matter to cognitive aging is unclear. We used latent change modeling to investigate this issue in a sample of very old adults (aged 81-103. years) assessed twice with a retest interval of 2.3. years. Using diffusion-tensor imaging, we probed white matter microstructure by quantifying mean fractional anisotropy and mean diffusivity of six major white matter tracts. Measures of perceptual speed, episodic memory, letter fluency, category fluency, and semantic memory were collected. Across time, alterations of white matter microstructure in the corticospinal tract were associated with decreases of perceptual speed. This association remained significant after statistically controlling for changes in white matter microstructure in the entire brain, in the other demarcated tracts, and in the other cognitive abilities. Changes in brain volume also did not account for the association. We conclude that white matter microstructure is a potent correlate of changes in sensorimotor aspects of behavior in very old age, but that it is unclear whether its impact extends to higher-order cognition.
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| 9. |
- Lövdén, Martin, et al.
(författare)
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Latent-Profile Analysis Reveals Behavioral and Brain Correlates of Dopamine-Cognition Associations
- 2018
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Ingår i: Cerebral Cortex. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 1047-3211 .- 1460-2199. ; 28:11, s. 3894-3907
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Evidence suggests that associations between the neurotransmitter dopamine and cognition are nonmonotonic and open to modulation by various other factors. The functional implications of a given level of dopamine may therefore differ from person to person. By applying latent-profile analysis to a large (n = 181) sample of adults aged 64-68 years, we probabilistically identified 3 subgroups that explain the multivariate associations between dopamine D2/3R availability (probed with C-11-raclopride-PET, in cortical, striatal, and hippocampal regions) and cognitive performance (episodic memory, working memory, and perceptual speed). Generally, greater receptor availability was associated with better cognitive performance. However, we discovered a subgroup of individuals for which high availability, particularly in striatum, was associated with poor performance, especially for working memory. Relative to the rest of the sample, this subgroup also had lower education, higher body-mass index, and lower resting-state connectivity between caudate nucleus and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. We conclude that a smaller subset of individuals induces a multivariate non-linear association between dopamine D2/3R availability and cognitive performance in this group of older adults, and discuss potential reasons for these differences that await further empirical scrutiny.
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| 10. |
- Nyberg, Lars, et al.
(författare)
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Dopamine D2 receptor availability is linked to hippocampal-caudate functional connectivity and episodic memory
- 2016
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Ingår i: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. - : Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. - 0027-8424 .- 1091-6490. ; 113:28, s. 7918-7923
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- D1 and D2 dopamine receptors (D1DRs and D2DRs) may contribute differently to various aspects of memory and cognition. The D1DR system has been linked to functions supported by the prefrontal cortex. By contrast, the role of the D2DR system is less clear, although it has been hypothesized that D2DRs make a specific contribution to hippocampus-based cognitive functions. Here we present results from 181 healthy adults between 64 and 68 y of age who underwent comprehensive assessment of episodic memory, working memory, and processing speed, along with MRI and D2DR assessment with [C-11]raclopride and PET. Caudate D2DR availability was positively associated with episodic memory but not with working memory or speed. Whole-brain analyses further revealed a relation between hippocampal D2DR availability and episodic memory. Hippocampal and caudate D2DR availability were interrelated, and functional MRI-based resting-state functional connectivity between the ventral caudate and medial temporal cortex increased as a function of caudate D2DR availability. Collectively, these findings indicate that D2DRs make a specific contribution to hippocampus-based cognition by influencing striatal and hippocampal regions, and their interactions.
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