Cited by 152Advanced Neuroimaging Techniques and ApplicationsAdvanced MRI Techniques and ApplicationsFunctional Brain Connectivity Studies

Multimodal magnetic resonance imaging assessment of white matter aging trajectories over the lifespan of healthy individuals

Bartzokis, George, Lu, Po H., Heydari, Panthea, Couvrette, Alexander, Lee, Grace J., Kalashyan, Greta, Freeman, Frank, Grinstead, John W. +5 more·2012·Biological Psychiatry

Abstract

Background Postmortem and volumetric imaging data suggest that brain myelination is a dynamic lifelong process that, in vulnerable late-myelinating regions, peaks in middle age. We examined whether known regional differences in axon size and age at myelination influence the timing and rates of development and degeneration/repair trajectories of white matter (WM) microstructure biomarkers.Methods Healthy subjects (n = 171) 14-93 years of age were examined with transverse relaxation rate (R(2)) and four diffusion tensor imaging measures (fractional anisotropy [FA] and radial, axial, and mean diffusivity [RD, AxD, MD, respectively]) of frontal lobe, genu, and splenium of the corpus callosum WM (FWM, GWM, and SWM, respectively).Results Only R(2) reflected known levels of myelin content with high values in late-myelinating FWM and GWM regions and low ones in early-myelinating SWM. In FWM and GWM, all metrics except FA had significant quadratic components that peaked at different ages (R(2) < RD < MD < AxD), with FWM peaking later than GWM. Factor analysis revealed that, although they defined different factors, R(2) and RD were the metrics most closely associated with each other and differed from AxD, which entered into a third factor.Conclusions The R(2) and RD trajectories were most dynamic in late-myelinating regions and reflect age-related differences in myelination, whereas AxD reflects axonal size and extra-axonal space. The FA and MD had limited specificity. The data suggest that the healthy adult brain undergoes continual change driven by development and repair processes devoted to creating and maintaining synchronous function among neural networks on which optimal cognition and behavior depend.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.biopsych.2012.07.010

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Authors
Bartzokis, G., Lu, P. H., Heydari, P., Couvrette, A., Lee, G. J., Kalashyan, G., Freeman, F., Grinstead, J. W., Villablanca, P., Finn, J. P., Mintz, J., Alger, J. R., & Altshuler, L. L.
Affiliations
  • University of California, Los Angeles (US)
  • The University of Texas at San Antonio Health Science Center (US)
Corresponding author
Bartzokis, George
Venue
Biological Psychiatry
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2012-12
Volume
72
Issue
12
Pages
1026-1034
ISSN
0006-3223 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2033844003
Cited by
152
References
69
Citations by year
2026: 5 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 14 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 8 · 2017: 12 · 2016: 15 · 2015: 12 · 2014: 19 · 2013: 10
FWCI
9.90
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Biological Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institute on Aging (R01AG027342, AG027342, K23AG028727)
  • National Institute of Mental Health (MH0266029)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Advanced Neuroimaging Techniques and Applications
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Advanced MRI Techniques and Applications
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Functional Brain Connectivity Studies
Keywords
white matter aging, myelination, transverse relaxation rate, diffusion tensor imaging, fractional anisotropy, corpus callosum, frontal lobe white matter, splenium, genu, lifespan development, white matter microstructure, axon diameter, myelin content
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Aging, Axons, Brain, Cerebral Cortex, Female, Humans, Image Processing, Computer-Assisted, Male, Middle Aged, Myelin Sheath, Nerve Degeneration, Nerve Fibers, Oligodendroglia, Reference Values, Regression Analysis, Sex Characteristics, Biomarkers, Anisotropy, Echo-Planar Imaging, Young Adult, Diffusion Tensor Imaging

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