title: No evidence of a longitudinal association between diurnal cortisol patterns and cognition.
abstract: We examined the effect of salivary cortisol on cognitive performance and decline in 3229 adults (79% men), mean age 61 years. Six saliva samples over the day along with a cognition test battery were administered twice in 5 years. In fully-adjusted cross-sectional analyses from 2002 to 2004, higher waking cortisol was associated with higher reasoning score (β = 0.08, 95% confidence interval: 0.01, 0.15) but this finding was not replicated using data from 2007 to 2009. Over the mean 5 years follow-up there was decline in all cognitive tests but this decline did not vary as a function of cortisol levels; the exception was among APOE e4 carriers where a flatter diurnal slope and higher bedtime cortisol were associated with faster decline in verbal fluency. Changes in cortisol measures between 2002/2004 and 2007/2009 or chronically elevated levels were not associated with cognitive performance in 2007/2009. These results, based on a large sample of community-dwelling adults suggest that variability in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal function is not a strong contributor to cognitive aging.
authors.affiliation: INSERM, U1018, Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health, Hôpital Paul Brousse Villejuif Cedex, France; Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, London, UK; Centre de Gérontologie, Hôpital Ste Périne, AP-HP, Paris, France. Electronic address: Archana.Singh-Manoux@inserm.fr.
authors.forename: Archana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Singh-Manoux
authors.affiliation: INSERM, U1018, Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health, Hôpital Paul Brousse Villejuif Cedex, France; University Versailles St-Quentin en Yvelines, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Aline
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dugravot
authors.affiliation: INSERM, U1018, Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health, Hôpital Paul Brousse Villejuif Cedex, France; University Versailles St-Quentin en Yvelines, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Alexis
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Elbaz
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, London, UK.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shipley
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, London, UK.
authors.forename: Mika
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kivimaki
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, London, UK.
authors.forename: Meena
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kumari
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology*; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000209:etiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism*; D007030:Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System / Q000502:physiology; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010913:Pituitary-Adrenal System / Q000502:physiology; D012463:Saliva / Q000378:metabolism*; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D006854:Hydrocortisone
keywords: Cognitive decline; Cortisol; Glucocorticoid
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