Experience-dependent plasticity of white-matter microstructure extends into old age

NEUROPSYCHOLOGIA

卷:48

Article

Loevden, Martin^1,2,3,4  Bodammer, Nils Christian^1,5  Kuehn, Simone⁶  Kaufmann, Joern⁵  Schuetze, Hartmut⁵  Tempelmann, Claus⁵  Heinze, Hans-Jochen^5,9  Duezel, Emrah^5,7,9  Schmiedek, Florian^1,8  Lindenberger, Ulman¹ 

[1] Max Planck Inst Human Dev, Ctr Lifespan Psychol, D-14195 Berlin, Germany

[2] Lund Univ, Dept Psychol, S-22100 Lund, Sweden

[3] Karolinska Inst, ARC, Stockholm, Sweden

[4] Stockholm Univ, S-10691 Stockholm, Sweden

[5] Otto VonGuericke Univ Magdegurg, Dept Neurol, Magdeburg, Germany

[6] Univ Ghent, Dept Expt Psychol, Ghent, Belgium

[7] UCL, Inst Cognit Neurosci, London WC1E 6BT, England

[8] German Inst Int Educ Res DIPF, Frankfurt, Germany

[9] DZNE German Ctr Neurodegenerat Disorders, Magdeburg, Germany

关键词: Aging;    Cognitive training;    Plasticity;    White-matter microstructure;   

DOI  :  10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2010.08.026

来源: Elsevier

【 摘 要 】

Experience-dependent alterations in the human brain's white-matter microstructure occur in early adulthood, but it is unknown whether such plasticity extends throughout life. We used cognitive training, diffusion-tensor imaging (DTI), and structural MRI to investigate plasticity of the white-matter tracts that connect the left and right hemisphere of the frontal lobes. Over a period of about 180 days, 20 younger adults and 12 older adults trained for a total of one hundred and one 1-h sessions on a set of three working memory, three episodic memory, and six perceptual speed tasks. Control groups were assessed at pre- and post-test. Training affected several DTI metrics and increased the area of the anterior part of the corpus callosum. These alterations were of similar magnitude in younger and older adults. The findings indicate that experience-dependent plasticity of white-matter microstructure extends into old age and that disruptions of structural interhemispheric connectivity in old age, which are pronounced in aging, are modifiable by experience and amenable to treatment. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

【 授权许可】

Free