Cortical thinning and sleep slow wave activity reductions mediate age-related improvements in cognition during mid-late adolescence

Sleep

article

Ong, Ju Lynn¹  Jamaluddin, S Azrin¹  Tandi, Jesisca²  Chee, Nicholas I Y N¹  Leong, Ruth L F¹  Huber, Reto³  Lo, June C¹  Chee, Michael W L¹ 

[1] Centre for Sleep and Cognition, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore;Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience, Duke-NUS Medical School;Child Development Center, University Children’s Hospital Zurich;Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich

关键词: adolescence;    cortical thickness;    slow wave activity;    cognitive function;   

DOI  :  10.1093/sleep/zsab206

学科分类：生理学

来源: American Academy of Sleep Medicine

【 摘 要 】

Study Objectives Gains in cognitive test performance that occur during adolescence are associated with brain maturation. Cortical thinning and reduced sleep slow wave activity (SWA) are markers of such developmental changes. Here we investigate whether they mediate age-related improvements in cognition.Methods 109 adolescents aged 15–19 years (49 males) underwent magnetic resonance imaging, polysomnography (PSG), and a battery of cognitive tasks within a 2-month time window. Cognitive tasks assessed nonverbal intelligence, sustained attention, speed of processing and working memory and executive function. To minimize the effect of sleep history on SWA and cognitive performance, PSG and test batteries were administered only after at least 8 nights of 9-h time-in-bed (TIB) sleep opportunity.Results Age-related improvements in speed of processing (r = 0.33, p = 0.001) and nonverbal intelligence (r = 0.24, p = 0.01) domains were observed. These cognitive changes were associated with reduced cortical thickness, particularly in bilateral temporoparietal regions (rs = −0.21 to −0.45, ps < 0.05), as well as SWA (r = −0.35, p < 0.001). Serial mediation models found that ROIs in the middle/superior temporal cortices, together with SWA mediated the age-related improvement observed on cognition.Conclusions During adolescence, age-related improvements in cognition are mediated by reductions in cortical thickness and sleep SWA.

【 授权许可】

All Rights reserved