Frontotemporal connections in episodic memory and aging: a diffusion MRI tractography study
Open accessAbstract
Human episodic memory is supported by networks of white matter tracts that connect frontal, temporal, and parietal regions. Degradation of white matter microstructure is increasingly recognized as a general mechanism of cognitive deterioration with aging. However, atrophy of gray matter regions also occurs and, to date, the potential role of specific white matter connections has been largely ignored. Changes to frontotemporal tracts may be important for the decline of episodic memory; while frontotemporal cooperation is known to be critical, the precise pathways of interaction are unknown. Diffusion-weighted MRI tractography was used to reconstruct three candidate fasciculi known to link components of memory networks: the fornix, the parahippocampal cingulum, and the uncinate fasciculus. Age-related changes in the microstructure of these tracts were investigated in 40 healthy older adults between the ages of 53 and 93 years. The relationships between aging, microstructure, and episodic memory were assessed for each individual tract. Age-related reductions of mean fractional anisotropy and/or increased mean diffusivity were found in all three tracts. However, age-related decline in recall was specifically associated with degradation of fornix microstructure, consistent with the view that this tract is important for episodic memory. In contrast, a decline in uncinate fasciculus microstructure was linked to impaired error monitoring in a visual object–location association task, echoing the effects of uncinate transection in monkeys. These results suggest that degradation of microstructure in the fornix and the uncinate fasciculus make critical but differential contributions to the mechanisms underlying age-related cognitive decline and subserve distinct components of memory.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Compared with other limbic white matter pathways, correlations between white matter microstructure and episodic memory in healthy populations are much more reliably found for the fornix than the cingulum.
“Compared with other limbic white matter pathways, correlations between white matter microstructure and episodic memory in healthy populations are much more reliably found for the fornix than the cingulum (e.g., Douet and Chang, 2015; Metzler-Baddeley et al., 2011; Rudebeck et al., 2009).”
From The cingulum bundle: Anatomy, function, and dysfunction (2018) · cites this paper as Metzler-Baddeley et al., 2011
Cingulum associations with episodic memory are not always observed in healthy older individuals nor are they always confined to its parahippocampal subdivision.
“However, such cingulum associations with episodic memory are not always observed in healthy older individuals (Metzler-Baddeley et al., 2011) nor are they always confined to its parahippocampal subdivision (e.g., Kantarci et al., 2011).”
From The cingulum bundle: Anatomy, function, and dysfunction (2018) · cites this paper as Metzler-Baddeley et al., 2011
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System
Delis, D. C., Kaplan, E., & Kramer, J. H. (2012) · PsycTESTS Dataset · doi:10.1037/t15082-000 · Cited by 2,683 · see citing works
Pathologic correlates of incidental MRI white matter signal hyperintensities
Fazekas, F., Kleinert, R., Offenbacher, H., Schmidt, R., Kleinert, G., Payer, F., Radner, H., & Lechner, H. (1993) · Neurology · doi:10.1212/wnl.43.9.1683 · Cited by 1,619 · see citing works
Daselaar, S. M. (2009) · Frontiers in Human Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/neuro.09.013.2009 · Cited by 1,501 · see citing works
What does the retrosplenial cortex do?
Vann, S. D., Aggleton, J. P., & Maguire, E. A. (2009) · Nature Reviews Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/nrn2733 · Cited by 1,409 · see citing works
Self-citationPrefrontal and medial temporal lobe interactions in long-term memory
Simons, J. S., & Spiers, H. J. (2003) · Nature Reviews Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/nrn1178 · Cited by 961 · see citing works
Twenty‐five pitfalls in the analysis of diffusion MRI data
Jones, D. K., & Cercignani, M. (2010) · NMR in Biomedicine · doi:10.1002/nbm.1543 · Cited by 827 · see citing works
Self-citationAggleton, J. P. (2000) · Brain · doi:10.1093/brain/123.4.800 · Cited by 231 · see citing works
Self-citationBrain structural alterations before mild cognitive impairment
Smith, C. D., Chebrolu, H., Wekstein, D. R., Schmitt, F. A., Jicha, G. A., Cooper, G., & Markesbery, W. R. (2007) · Neurology · doi:10.1212/01.wnl.0000259542.54830.34 · Cited by 161 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 6
- Aggleton JP, Brown MW (2002) Integrating systems for event memory: Testing the contribution of the fornix. In: Neuropsychology of memory, third edition (Squire LR, Schacter D, eds), pp. 377-394. New York: Guil- ford Publications.
- Della Sala S, Wilson L, Gray C (1997) Visual Pattern Test. Oxford, UK: Pearson Assessment.
- Saunders RC, Aggleton JP (2007) Origin and topography of fibers contrib- uting to the fornix in macaque monkeys. Hippocampus 17:396 -411.
- Schmahmann JD, Pandya DN (2006) Fiber pathways of the brain. New York: Oxford UP.
- Wechsler D (1999) Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-3rd UK Edition (WAIS-III UK). Oxford, UK: Psychological Corporation and Pearson Assessment.
- Yonelinas AP (2002) The nature of recollection and familiarity: a review of 30 years of research. J Mem Lang 46:441-517.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
The cingulum bundle: Anatomy, function, and dysfunction
Bubb, E. J., Metzler-Baddeley, C., & Aggleton, J. P. (2018) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2018.05.008 · Cited by 740 · see citing works
“Metzler-Baddeley and co-workers (Metzler-Baddeley et al., 2011; Metzler-Baddeley et al., 2012b, c; Christiansen et al., 2016) addressed E.”
InfluentialSelf-citationHow and how not to correct for CSF-contamination in diffusion MRI
Metzler-Baddeley, C., O'Sullivan, M. J., Bells, S., Pasternak, O., & Jones, D. K. (2012) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2011.08.043 · Cited by 291 · see citing works
Self-citationBurzynska, A. Z., Jiao, Y., Knecht, A. M., Fanning, J., Awick, E. A., Chen, T., Gothe, N., Voss, M. W., McAuley, E., & Kramer, A. F. (2017) · Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnagi.2017.00059 · Cited by 150 · see citing works
Douet, V., & Chang, L. (2015) · Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnagi.2014.00343 · Cited by 122 · see citing works
Cordella, A., Krashia, P., Nobili, A., Pignataro, A., La Barbera, L., Viscomi, M. T., Valzania, A., Keller, F., Ammassari-Teule, M., Mercuri, N. B., et al. (2018) · Neurobiology of Disease · doi:10.1016/j.nbd.2018.05.006 · Cited by 82 · see citing works
Tractography in the presence of multiple sclerosis lesions
Lipp, I., Parker, G. D., Tallantyre, E. C., Goodall, A., Grama, S., Patitucci, E., Heveron, P., Tomassini, V., & Jones, D. K. (2020) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.116471 · Cited by 51 · see citing works
Self-citationWhite-matter tract integrity in late-life depression: associations with severity and cognition
Charlton, R. A., Lamar, M., Zhang, A., Yang, S., Ajilore, O., & Kumar, A. (2014) · Psychological Medicine · doi:10.1017/s0033291713001980 · Cited by 49 · see citing works
Ray, N. J., Metzler-Baddeley, C., Khondoker, M. R., Grothe, M. J., Teipel, S., Wright, P., Heinsen, H., Jones, D. K., Aggleton, J. P., & O'Sullivan, M. J. (2015) · The Journal of Neuroscience · doi:10.1523/jneurosci.3617-14.2015 · Cited by 48 · see citing works
Self-citationDiminution of context association memory structure in subjects with subjective cognitive decline
Fan, L., Lai, Y., Chen, T., Hsu, Y., Chen, P., Huang, K., Cheng, T., Tseng, W. I., Hua, M., Chen, Y., et al. (2018) · Human Brain Mapping · doi:10.1002/hbm.24022 · Cited by 40 · see citing works
Melloni, E. M. T., Poletti, S., Vai, B., Bollettini, I., Colombo, C., & Benedetti, F. (2019) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2019.02.015 · Cited by 34 · see citing works
Kreilkamp, B. A. K., Lisanti, L., Glenn, G. R., Wieshmann, U. C., Das, K., Marson, A. G., & Keller, S. S. (2019) · NeuroImage: Clinical · doi:10.1016/j.nicl.2019.102024 · Cited by 27 · see citing works
Mole, J. P., Fasano, F., Evans, J., Sims, R., Hamilton, D. A., Kidd, E., & Metzler-Baddeley, C. (2020) · Neurobiology of Aging · doi:10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2020.06.014 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Self-citationAmer, T., & Davachi, L. (2022) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/32egy · Cited by 3 · see citing works
- Authors
- Metzler-Baddeley, C., Jones, D. K., Belaroussi, B., Aggleton, J. P., & O'Sullivan, M. J.
- Affiliations
- Cardiff University (GB)
- Venue
- The Journal of Neuroscience
- Publisher
- Society for Neuroscience
- Published
- 2011-09-14
- Volume
- 31
- Issue
- 37
- Pages
- 13236-13245
- ISSN
- 0270-6474 (ISSN-L)
- 1529-2401
- PMC
- PMC6623273
- OpenAlex
- W2051780893
- Cited by
- 247
- References
- 8
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 18 · 2024: 10 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 24 · 2021: 17 · 2020: 22 · 2019: 31 · 2018: 16 · 2017: 16 · 2016: 17 · 2015: 21 · 2014: 15 · 2013: 10 · 2012: 10
- FWCI
- 9.06
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Journal of Neuroscience (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- ORCA Online Research @Cardiff (Cardiff University) (submittedVersion)
- Research Bank (Australian Catholic University) (submittedVersion)
- Research Portal (King's College London) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Advanced Neuroimaging Techniques and Applications
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory Processes and Influences
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Cognitive Abilities and Testing
- Keywords
- episodic memory, aging, white matter microstructure, fornix, uncinate fasciculus, age-related cognitive decline, fractional anisotropy, mean diffusivity, error monitoring, object-location associations, memory networks
- MeSH terms
- Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Aging, Cerebral Cortex, Female, Humans, Intelligence, Male, Middle Aged, Nerve Fibers, Myelinated, Neural Pathways, Psychomotor Performance, Anisotropy, Fornix, Brain, Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Diffusion Tensor Imaging, Executive Function, Memory, Episodic
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
