title: Age-Related Increases in Tip-of-the-tongue are Distinct from Decreases in Remembering Names: A Functional MRI Study.
abstract: Tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) experiences increase with age and frequently heighten concerns about memory decline. We studied 73 clinically normal older adults participating in the Harvard Aging Brain Study. They completed a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) task that required remembering names associated with pictures of famous faces. Older age was associated with more self-reported TOT experiences and a decrease in the percentage of remembered names. However, the percentage of TOT experiences and the percentage of remembered names were not directly correlated. We mapped fMRI activity for recollection of famous names and TOT and examined activity in the hippocampal formation, retrosplenial cortex, and lateral prefrontal cortex. The hippocampal formation was similarly activated in recollection and TOT experiences. In contrast, the retrosplenial cortex was most active for recollection and lateral prefrontal cortex was most active for TOT experiences. Together, the results confirm that age-related increases in TOT experiences are not only solely the consequence of age-related decline in recollection, but also likely reflect functional alterations in the brain networks that support retrieval monitoring and cognitive control. These findings provide behavioral and neuroimaging evidence that age-related TOT experiences and memory failure are partially independent processes.
authors: Harvard Aging Brain Study, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.|Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA.|German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Department of Population Health Sciences, Bonn, 53127 Bonn, Germany.
authors: Willem
authors: W
authors: Huijbers
authors: Harvard Aging Brain Study, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.|Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA.|Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment, Department of Neurology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
authors: Kathryn V
authors: KV
authors: Papp
authors: Harvard Aging Brain Study, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.|Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA.|Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment, Department of Neurology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
authors: Molly
authors: M
authors: LaPoint
authors: Harvard Aging Brain Study, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.|Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment, Department of Neurology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
authors: Sarah E
authors: SE
authors: Wigman
authors: Harvard Aging Brain Study, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.|Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA.
authors: Alex
authors: A
authors: Dagley
authors: Harvard Aging Brain Study, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.|Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA.
authors: Trey
authors: T
authors: Hedden
authors: Harvard Aging Brain Study, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.|Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA.|Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment, Department of Neurology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
authors: Dorene M
authors: DM
authors: Rentz
authors: Harvard Aging Brain Study, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.|Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA.
authors: Aaron P
authors: AP
authors: Schultz
authors: Harvard Aging Brain Study, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.|Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA.|Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment, Department of Neurology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
authors: Reisa A
authors: RA
authors: Sperling
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D005145:Face / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009275:Names; D014059:Tongue / Q000502:physiology
keywords: Harvard aging brain study; aging; fMRI; memory; tip-of-the-tongue