title: High consistency of regional cortical thinning in aging across multiple samples.
abstract: Cross-sectional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies of cortical thickness and volume have shown age effects on large areas, but there are substantial discrepancies across studies regarding the localization and magnitude of effects. These discrepancies hinder understanding of effects of aging on brain morphometry, and limit the potential usefulness of MR in research on healthy and pathological age-related brain changes. The present study was undertaken to overcome this problem by assessing the consistency of age effects on cortical thickness across 6 different samples with a total of 883 participants. A surface-based segmentation procedure (FreeSurfer) was used to calculate cortical thickness continuously across the brain surface. The results showed consistent age effects across samples in the superior, middle, and inferior frontal gyri, superior and middle temporal gyri, precuneus, inferior and superior parietal cortices, fusiform and lingual gyri, and the temporo-parietal junction. The strongest effects were seen in the superior and inferior frontal gyri, as well as superior parts of the temporal lobe. The inferior temporal lobe and anterior cingulate cortices were relatively less affected by age. The results are discussed in relation to leading theories of cognitive aging.
authors.affiliation: Center for the Study of Human Cognition, Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Olso 0317, Norway. andersmf@psykologi.uio.no
authors.forename: Anders M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Fjell
authors.forename: Lars T
authors.initials: LT
authors.lastname: Westlye
authors.forename: Inge
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Amlien
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Espeseth
authors.forename: Ivar
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Reinvang
authors.forename: Naftali
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Raz
authors.forename: Ingrid
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Agartz
authors.forename: David H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Salat
authors.forename: Doug N
authors.initials: DN
authors.lastname: Greve
authors.forename: Bruce
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Fischl
authors.forename: Anders M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Dale
authors.forename: Kristine B
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Walhovd
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000473:pathology*; D019412:Anatomy, Cross-Sectional / Q000379:methods*; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009929:Organ Size; D055815:Young Adult