title: Fluid intelligence and brain functional organization in aging yoga and meditation practitioners.
abstract: Numerous studies have documented the normal age-related decline of neural structure, function, and cognitive performance. Preliminary evidence suggests that meditation may reduce decline in specific cognitive domains and in brain structure. Here we extended this research by investigating the relation between age and fluid intelligence and resting state brain functional network architecture using graph theory, in middle-aged yoga and meditation practitioners, and matched controls. Fluid intelligence declined slower in yoga practitioners and meditators combined than in controls. Resting state functional networks of yoga practitioners and meditators combined were more integrated and more resilient to damage than those of controls. Furthermore, mindfulness was positively correlated with fluid intelligence, resilience, and global network efficiency. These findings reveal the possibility to increase resilience and to slow the decline of fluid intelligence and brain functional architecture and suggest that mindfulness plays a mechanistic role in this preservation.
authors.affiliation: Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA ; Bender Institute of Neuroimaging, Justus Liebig Universität Giessen Giessen, Germany ; Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University Maastricht, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Tim
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Gard
authors.affiliation: Information and Communication Technologies, Electronics and Applied Mathematics Institute, Université Catholique de Louvain Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium.
authors.forename: Maxime
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Taquet
authors.affiliation: BrainBot San Francisco, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Rohan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dixit
authors.affiliation: Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA ; Institut für Medizinische Psychologie, Charite Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Britta K
authors.initials: BK
authors.lastname: Hölzel
authors.affiliation: Media Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Yves-Alexandre
authors.initials: YA
authors.lastname: de Montjoye
authors.affiliation: PGSP-Stanford Psy.D. Consortium Palo Alto, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Narayan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Brach
authors.affiliation: Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA ; VA Boston Healthcare System Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: David H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Salat
authors.affiliation: Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Bradford C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Dickerson
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Michigan State University East Lansing, MI, USA.
authors.forename: Jeremy R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Gray
authors.affiliation: Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Sara W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Lazar
keywords: aging; brain network integration; brain network resilience; brain network segregation; fluid intelligence; graph theory; mindfulness; yoga