title: Brain tissues atrophy is not always the best structural biomarker of physiological aging: A multimodal cross-sectional study.
abstract: This study presents a voxel-based multiple regression analysis of different magnetic resonance image modalities, including anatomical T1-weighted, T2* relaxometry, and diffusion tensor imaging. Quantitative parameters sensitive to complementary brain tissue alterations, including morphometric atrophy, mineralization, microstructural damage, and anisotropy loss, were compared in a linear physiological aging model in 140 healthy subjects (range 20-74 years). The performance of different predictors and the identification of the best biomarker of age-induced structural variation were compared without a priori anatomical knowledge. The best quantitative predictors in several brain regions were iron deposition and microstructural damage, rather than macroscopic tissue atrophy. Age variations were best resolved with a combination of markers, suggesting that multiple predictors better capture age-induced tissue alterations. These findings highlight the importance of a combined evaluation of multimodal biomarkers for the study of aging and point to a number of novel applications for the method described.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cherubini
authors.forename: Maria Eugenia
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Caligiuri
authors.forename: Patrice
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Péran
authors.forename: Umberto
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Sabatini
authors.forename: Carlo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cosentino
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Amato
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology*; D016880:Anisotropy; D001284:Atrophy / Q000473:pathology; D015415:Biomarkers; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology* / Q000502:physiology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D056324:Diffusion Tensor Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012044:Regression Analysis; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers