title: White matter integrity of motor connections related to training gains in healthy aging.
abstract: Impaired motor skill acquisition is a feature of older age. Acquisition of new motor skills requires the interplay between different cortical motor areas. Using diffusion tensor imaging we reconstructed cortico-cortical connections between the primary motor cortex (M1) and secondary motor areas in 11 older and 11 young participants who took part in a motor skill acquisition paradigm with the nondominant left hand. Examining the extent to which tract-related integrity correlated with training gains we found that white matter integrity of fibers connecting contralateral M1 with both contralateral (r = 0.85) and ipsilateral supplementary motor areas (r = 0.92) were positively associated in old participants. Also, fibers connecting contralateral M1 with ipsilateral dorsal premotor (r = 0.82) and fibers connecting ipsilateral dorsal premotor and supplementary motor area (r = 0.88) were positively related to skill acquisition (all p < 0.05). A similar structure-behavior relationship was not present in the young control subjects suggesting a critical role of brain structural integrity for motor learning in healthy aging.
authors.affiliation: Brain Imaging and Neurostimulation (BINS) Laboratory, Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Schulz
authors.affiliation: Brain Imaging and Neurostimulation (BINS) Laboratory, Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Máximo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zimerman
authors.affiliation: Brain Imaging and Neurostimulation (BINS) Laboratory, Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Jan E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Timmermann
authors.affiliation: Brain Imaging and Neurostimulation (BINS) Laboratory, Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Maximilian J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Wessel
authors.affiliation: Brain Imaging and Neurostimulation (BINS) Laboratory, Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gerloff
authors.affiliation: Brain Imaging and Neurostimulation (BINS) Laboratory, Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany. Electronic address: f.hummel@uke.de.
authors.forename: Friedhelm C
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Hummel
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D056324:Diffusion Tensor Imaging; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D009044:Motor Cortex / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology*; D009048:Motor Skills / Q000502:physiology*; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Aging; Connectivity; Diffusion; Healthy; Learning; Matter; Premotor; White; motor