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Baciu M, Roger E. Finding the Words: How Does the Aging Brain Process Language? A Focused Review of Brain Connectivity and Compensatory Pathways. Top Cogn Sci 2024. [PMID: 38734967 DOI: 10.1111/tops.12736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2023] [Revised: 04/30/2024] [Accepted: 05/02/2024] [Indexed: 05/13/2024]
Abstract
As people age, there is a natural decline in cognitive functioning and brain structure. However, the relationship between brain function and cognition in older adults is neither straightforward nor uniform. Instead, it is complex, influenced by multiple factors, and can vary considerably from one person to another. Reserve, compensation, and maintenance mechanisms may help explain why some older adults can maintain high levels of performance while others struggle. These mechanisms are often studied concerning memory and executive functions that are particularly sensitive to the effects of aging. However, language abilities can also be affected by age, with changes in production fluency. The impact of brain changes on language abilities needs to be further investigated to understand the dynamics and patterns of aging, especially successful aging. We previously modeled several compensatory profiles of language production and lexical access/retrieval in aging within the Lexical Access and Retrieval in Aging (LARA) model. In the present paper, we propose an extended version of the LARA model, called LARA-Connectivity (LARA-C), incorporating recent evidence on brain connectivity. Finally, we discuss factors that may influence the strategies implemented with aging. The LARA-C model can serve as a framework to understand individual performance and open avenues for possible personalized interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monica Baciu
- LPNC, Psychology Department, Grenoble Alps University
- Neurology Department, Grenoble Alps University Hospital
| | - Elise Roger
- LPNC, Psychology Department, Grenoble Alps University
- Communication and Aging Laboratory, Research Center of the University Institute of Geriatrics of Montreal
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Montreal
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Krämer C, Stumme J, da Costa Campos L, Dellani P, Rubbert C, Caspers J, Caspers S, Jockwitz C. Prediction of cognitive performance differences in older age from multimodal neuroimaging data. GeroScience 2024; 46:283-308. [PMID: 37308769 PMCID: PMC10828156 DOI: 10.1007/s11357-023-00831-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2023] [Accepted: 05/17/2023] [Indexed: 06/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Differences in brain structure and functional and structural network architecture have been found to partly explain cognitive performance differences in older ages. Thus, they may serve as potential markers for these differences. Initial unimodal studies, however, have reported mixed prediction results of selective cognitive variables based on these brain features using machine learning (ML). Thus, the aim of the current study was to investigate the general validity of cognitive performance prediction from imaging data in healthy older adults. In particular, the focus was with examining whether (1) multimodal information, i.e., region-wise grey matter volume (GMV), resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC), and structural connectivity (SC) estimates, may improve predictability of cognitive targets, (2) predictability differences arise for global cognition and distinct cognitive profiles, and (3) results generalize across different ML approaches in 594 healthy older adults (age range: 55-85 years) from the 1000BRAINS study. Prediction potential was examined for each modality and all multimodal combinations, with and without confound (i.e., age, education, and sex) regression across different analytic options, i.e., variations in algorithms, feature sets, and multimodal approaches (i.e., concatenation vs. stacking). Results showed that prediction performance differed considerably between deconfounding strategies. In the absence of demographic confounder control, successful prediction of cognitive performance could be observed across analytic choices. Combination of different modalities tended to marginally improve predictability of cognitive performance compared to single modalities. Importantly, all previously described effects vanished in the strict confounder control condition. Despite a small trend for a multimodal benefit, developing a biomarker for cognitive aging remains challenging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camilla Krämer
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1), Research Centre Jülich, Jülich, Germany
- Institute for Anatomy I, Medical Faculty & University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Johanna Stumme
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1), Research Centre Jülich, Jülich, Germany
- Institute for Anatomy I, Medical Faculty & University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Lucas da Costa Campos
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1), Research Centre Jülich, Jülich, Germany
- Institute for Anatomy I, Medical Faculty & University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Paulo Dellani
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1), Research Centre Jülich, Jülich, Germany
- Institute for Anatomy I, Medical Faculty & University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Christian Rubbert
- Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Medical Faculty & University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Julian Caspers
- Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Medical Faculty & University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Svenja Caspers
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1), Research Centre Jülich, Jülich, Germany
- Institute for Anatomy I, Medical Faculty & University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Christiane Jockwitz
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1), Research Centre Jülich, Jülich, Germany.
- Institute for Anatomy I, Medical Faculty & University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany.
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Riccardi N, Zhao X, den Ouden DB, Fridriksson J, Desai RH, Wang Y. Network-based statistics distinguish anomic and Broca's aphasia. Brain Struct Funct 2023:10.1007/s00429-023-02738-4. [PMID: 38160205 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-023-02738-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2023] [Accepted: 11/21/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Aphasia is a speech-language impairment commonly caused by damage to the left hemisphere. The neural mechanisms that underpin different types of aphasia and their symptoms are still not fully understood. This study aims to identify differences in resting-state functional connectivity between anomic and Broca's aphasia measured through resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI). METHODS We used the network-based statistic (NBS) method, as well as voxel- and connectome-based lesion symptom mapping (V-, CLSM), to identify distinct neural correlates of the anomic and Broca's groups. To control for lesion effect, we included lesion volume as a covariate in both the NBS method and LSM. RESULTS NBS identified a subnetwork located in the dorsal language stream bilaterally, including supramarginal gyrus, primary sensory, motor, and auditory cortices, and insula. The connections in the subnetwork were weaker in the Broca's group than the anomic group. The properties of the subnetwork were examined through complex network measures, which indicated that regions in right inferior frontal sulcus, right paracentral lobule, and bilateral superior temporal gyrus exhibit intensive interaction. Left superior temporal gyrus, right postcentral gyrus, and left supramarginal gyrus play an important role in information flow and overall communication efficiency. Disruption of this network underlies the constellation of symptoms associated with Broca's aphasia. Whole-brain CLSM did not detect any significant connections, suggesting an advantage of NBS when thousands of connections are considered. However, CLSM identified connections that differentiated Broca's from anomic aphasia when analysis was restricted to a hypothesized network of interest. DISCUSSION We identified novel signatures of resting-state brain network differences between groups of individuals with anomic and Broca's aphasia. We identified a subnetwork of connections that statistically differentiated the resting-state brain networks of the two groups, in comparison with standard CLSM results that yielded isolated connections. Network-level analyses are useful tools for the investigation of the neural correlates of language deficits post-stroke.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas Riccardi
- Department of Psychology, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA
| | - Xingpei Zhao
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA
| | - Dirk-Bart den Ouden
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA
| | - Julius Fridriksson
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA
| | - Rutvik H Desai
- Department of Psychology, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA
| | - Yuan Wang
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.
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