Variation in brain aging: A review and perspective on the utility of individualized approaches to the study of functional networks in aging.

Diana C Perez, Joanna J Hernandez, Gretchen Wulfekuhle, Caterina Gratton

Journal: Neurobiology of aging 2025;147():68-87

PMID: 39709668

Full Text on Elsevier Science View on PubMed

Abstract

Healthy aging is associated with cognitive decline across multiple domains, including executive function, memory, and attention. These cognitive changes can often influence an individual's ability to function and quality of life. However, the degree to which individuals experience cognitive decline, as well as the trajectory of these changes, exhibits wide variability across people. These cognitive abilities are thought to depend on the coordinated activity of large-scale networks. Like behavioral effects, large variation can be seen in brain structure and function with aging, including in large-scale functional networks. However, tracking this variation requires methods that reliably measure individual brain networks and their changes over time. Here, we review the literature on age-related cognitive decline and on age-related differences in brain structure and function. We focus particularly on functional networks and the individual variation that exists in these measures. We propose that novel individual-centered fMRI approaches can shed new light on patterns of inter- and intra-individual variability in aging. These approaches may be instrumental in understanding the neural bases of cognitive decline.

Address: Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA. Electronic address: [email protected].; Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA; Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.; Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, USA; University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.; Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA; Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, USA; University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL, USA.

DOI: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2024.11.010

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MeSH Terms: Humans, Brain, Aging, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Cognitive Dysfunction, Nerve Net, Cognition, Healthy Aging