Cardiovascular fitness is thought to offset declines in cognitive performance, but little is known about the cortical mechanisms that underlie these changes in humans. Research using animal models shows that aerobic training increases cortical capillary supplies, the number of synaptic connections, and the development of new neurons. The end result is a brain that is more efficient, plastic, and adaptive, which translates into better performance in aging animals. Here, in two separate experiments, we demonstrate for the first time to our knowledge, in humans that increases in cardiovascular fitness results in increased functioning of key aspects of the attentional network of the brain during a cognitively challenging task. Specifically, highly fit (Study 1) or aerobically trained (Study 2) persons show greater task-related activity in regions of the prefrontal and parietal cortices that are involved in spatial selection and inhibitory functioning, when compared with low-fit (Study 1) or nonaerobic control (Study 2) participants. Additionally, in both studies there exist groupwise differences in activation of the anterior cingulate cortex, which is thought to monitor for conflict in the attentional system, and signal the need for adaptation in the attentional network. These data suggest that increased cardiovascular fitness can affect improvements in the plasticity of the aging human brain, and may serve to reduce both biological and cognitive senescence in humans.S everal approaches to maintaining or improving cognitive performance in older adults have shown promise. It has long been known that older experts in a variety of domains can maintain high levels of performance into their 70s (1, 2). Also, in some cases, older adults have been shown to benefit as much or more than young adults from formal training of different cognitive abilities (3, 4). However, with few exceptions (4), the beneficial effects of these interventions tend to be limited to the tasks used in training. For example, expertise in typing has little or no effect on one's ability to drive a car, and training in visual search paradigms has little effect on working memory performance.Since Spirudiso's seminal study of aging racquet sportsmen (5), there has been increasing interest in the utility of physical exercise as a more global moderator of age-related declines in cognition (6). A recent metaanalysis of the literature examining the effects of cardiovascular fitness training (CFT) on cognitive function has confirmed that CFT can play such a role (7). An analysis of 18 longitudinal fitness training studies demonstrated that regardless of the cognitive task type on which participants were tested, CFT participants showed a significantly greater improvement than control participants.Although, to date, the neural mechanisms underlying cognitive improvements associated with cardiovascular fitness in aging adults have not been well studied in human populations, data collected from animal models suggests some possibilities. For example, aerobic train...

These findings extend the scope of beneficial effects of aerobic exercise beyond cardiovascular health, and they suggest a strong solid biological basis for the benefits of exercise on the brain health of older adults.

1800" to 2000'C. The sarnples stayed at that temperature for 10 to 20 m n before belng quenched by the cuttng off of power to the furnace. The quench rate was measured to be -500'C per second The samples were subsequently decompressed at a rate of 2 to 3 GPaihour. 17. NMR spectra descrlbed here were collected with a Varan Unity spectrometer operating at 9 L T was a MAS probe from Doty Scentfic (Coumba, SC), wlth 3.5-mm rotors commonly splnning at 9.3 kHz (unless otherwise specifed). To make 27AI analyss as straightforward as possible, a small tip angle ( i n I 6 ) was used in all cases. ' "a and "Al NMR was done w t h the use of delay tmes on the order of 1 s, wlth a spectral band width of 2 MHz. For2"S1 NMR. a smaller spectral band width was used because of the mited chemical shft range in Si; however much longer delay tlmes were used (70 s) because o i the possibility of havng long relaxaton tlmesfor Si speces even w t h a small paramagnetic dopant (Gd20,) [A. Abragam. Principles of Nuclear Magnetism (Oxford Unv. Press, New York, 1961)). We subtracted a 27Al background from the probe by colectng data on an empty rotor under condtions identical to those under whlch the glass samples were run. There was no probe background ~n the 23Na and 23S1 spectra; however, the Si3N, rotors gave a characteristc resonance at -L8.8 ppm relative to tetramethyl silane at 0 ppm with spinnlng sdebands in the sllcon NMR Thls was used as an internal chemical shift cabratlon for '%i NMR. To reference the chemcal sh~ft of ' % l a and "AI, a liquid sample of 1 M NaC (0 ppm) and 1 M ACI, (0 ppm) was run before each spectrum, respectvely. 18. We prepared the ?9S~enriched Ab5,NTS5, by fusing sto~chometr~c amounts of 92%-abeed 29Si0, glass (Cambridge Isotope Laboratory. Andover, MA) with sodium carbonate (Na,CO,), alumnum oxlde (A120s). and 0.1 weght percent gadolnium oxide (Gd20,) at 1200'C for 2 hours. Glass was formed upon removal of the Pt crucble containing the mixed iqud components from the furnace. We did not chemically analyze the sample because of the expense of labeled material and the proven nature of the synthesis process. Gd20s was added to shorten the spin-lattlce relaation time of SI. This sample. along wlth unlabeled glass made under the same conditions, was then sealed In Pt capsules for use in the hlgh-pressure multl-anvl quenchng descrlbed in (76).

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