Cui Dong, Wang Dianyu, Jin Jingna, Liu Xu, Wang Yuheng, Cao Weifang, Liu Zhipeng, Yin Tao
Department of Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Tai'an, China.
School of Radiology, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Tai'an, China.
Quant Imaging Med Surg. 2023 Feb 1;13(2):1083-1099. doi: 10.21037/qims-22-583. Epub 2022 Dec 13.
The impacts of age and sex on brain structures related to cognitive function may be important for understanding the role of aging in Alzheimer disease for both sexes. We intended to investigate the age and sex differences of cortical morphology in middle-aged and older adults and their relationships with the decline of cognitive function.
In this cross-sectional study, we examined the cortical morphology in 204 healthy middle-aged and older adult participants aged 45 to 89 years using structural magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI) data from the Dallas Lifespan Brain Study data set. Brain cortical thickness, surface complexity, and gyrification index were analyzed through a completely automated surface-based morphometric analysis using the CAT12 toolbox. Furthermore, we explored the correlation between cortical morphology differences and test scores for processing speed and working memory.
There were no significant interactions of age and sex with cortical thickness, fractal dimension, or gyrification index. Rather, we found that both males and females showed age-related decreases in cortical thickness, fractal dimension, and gyrification index. There were significant sex differences in the fractal dimension in middle-aged participants and the gyrification index in older adult participants. In addition, there were significant positive correlations between the cortical thickness of the right superior frontal gyrus and Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS)-III Letter-Number Sequencing test scores in males (r=0.394; P<0.001; 95% CI for r values 0.216-0.577) and females (r=0.344; P<0.001; 95% CI for r values 0.197-0.491), respectively. Furthermore, a significant relationship between the gyrification index of the right supramarginal gyrus (SupraMG) and WAIS-III Digit Symbol test scores was observed in older adult participants (r=0.375; P<0.001; 95% CI for r values 0.203-0.522).
The results suggest that, compared with males, females have more extensive differences in cortical morphology. The gyrification index of the right SupraMG can be used as an imaging marker of sexual cognitive differences between males and females in older adults. This study helps to further understand sex differences in the aging of the brain and cognition.
年龄和性别对与认知功能相关的脑结构的影响，对于理解衰老在两性阿尔茨海默病中的作用可能至关重要。我们旨在研究中年和老年成年人皮质形态的年龄和性别差异，以及它们与认知功能衰退的关系。
在这项横断面研究中，我们使用达拉斯寿命期脑研究数据集的结构磁共振成像（sMRI）数据，检查了204名年龄在45至89岁之间的健康中年和老年参与者的皮质形态。通过使用CAT12工具箱的基于表面的完全自动化形态计量分析，分析脑皮质厚度、表面复杂性和脑回指数。此外，我们探讨了皮质形态差异与处理速度和工作记忆测试分数之间的相关性。
年龄和性别与皮质厚度、分形维数或脑回指数之间没有显著的交互作用。相反，我们发现男性和女性的皮质厚度、分形维数和脑回指数均呈现与年龄相关的下降。中年参与者的分形维数和老年参与者的脑回指数存在显著的性别差异。此外，右侧额上回的皮质厚度与男性（r=0.394；P<0.001；r值的95%CI为0.216-0.577）和女性（r=0.344；P<0.001；r值的95%CI为0.197-0.491）的韦氏成人智力量表（WAIS）-III字母数字排序测试分数之间分别存在显著的正相关。此外，在老年参与者中观察到右侧缘上回（SupraMG）的脑回指数与WAIS-III数字符号测试分数之间存在显著关系（r=0.375；P<0.001；r值的95%CI为0.203-0.522）。
结果表明，与男性相比，女性在皮质形态上有更广泛的差异。右侧SupraMG的脑回指数可作为老年男性和女性性别认知差异的影像学标志物。本研究有助于进一步了解大脑衰老和认知中的性别差异。
