Cardiorespiratory fitness is associated with brain structure, cognition, and mood in a middle-aged cohort at risk for Alzheimer’s disease

Boots, Elizabeth A.; Schultz, Stephanie A.; Oh, Jennifer M.; Larson, Jordan; Edwards, Dorothy Farrar; Cook, Dane B.; Koscik, Rebecca L.; Dowling, N. Maritza; Gallagher, Catherine L.; Carlsson, Cynthia M.; Rowley, Howard A.; Bendlin, Barbara B.; LaRue, Asenath; Asthana, Sanjay; Hermann, Bruce P.; Sager, Mark A.; Johnson, Sterling C.; Okonkwo, Ozioma C.

doi:10.1007/s11682-014-9325-9

Cited by 90 publications

(70 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…The link between regional CBF and fitness is believed to result from angiogenesis and increased vascular density (Rhyu et al 2010). The finding of an inverse relationship between precuneal CBF and normative aerobic fitness, however, was unexpected due to the observations in Masters Athletes (Thomas et al 2013) and relationships between fitness and precuneal tissue volume (Boots et al 2014). In the current study, a direct relationship was observed between age and normative fitness, whereby younger participants exhibited poorer fitness relative to their peers than older participants.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exercise intensity modulates the change in cerebral blood flow following aerobic exercise in chronic stroke

et al. 2015

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The mechanisms supporting functional improvement by aerobic exercise following stroke remain incompletely understood. This study investigated how cycling intensity and aerobic fitness influence cerebral blood flow (CBF) following a single exercise session. Thirteen community-living stroke survivors performed 20 min of semi-recumbent cycling at low and moderate intensities (40-50 and 60-70 % of heart rate reserve, respectively) as determined from an exercise stress test. CBF was quantified by arterial spin labeling MRI at baseline, as well as 30 and 50 min post-exercise. An intensity-dependent effect was observed in the right post-central and supramarginal gyri up to 50 min after exercise (uncorrected p < 0.005, cluster size ≥10). Regional CBF was increased 18 ± 17 % and reduced 8 ± 12 % following moderate- and low-intensity cycling, respectively. In contrast, CBF changes were similar between sessions in the right lentiform nucleus and mid-frontal gyrus, as well as the left temporal and parietal gyri. Aerobic fitness was directly related to posterior cingulate and thalamic CBF, and inversely related to precuneal CBF at rest (R (2) ≥ 0.75); however, no relationship between fitness and the post-exercise change in CBF was observed. Divergent changes in regional CBF were observed in the right parietal cortex following low- and moderate-intensity exercise, which suggests that intensity of prescribed exercise may be useful in optimizing rehabilitation.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exercise intensity modulates the change in cerebral blood flow following aerobic exercise in chronic stroke

et al. 2015

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“…In the context of aging and AD, studies have also measured cardiorespiratory fitness (e.g., Barnes et al, 2003; Boots et al, 2014; Colcombe et al, 2004; Erickson et al, 2009; Hayes et al, 2013; Honea et al, 2009; Nyberg et al, 2014; Spirduso, 1980; Voss et al, 2010b), often intended as an objective biomarker of moderate intensity physical activity. Cardiorespiratory fitness is a physiological attribute defined as the ability for circulatory and respiratory systems to deliver oxygen to working muscles and the ability of the muscles to extract and use the oxygen to generate energy.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fitness, but not physical activity, is related to functional integrity of brain networks associated with aging

et al. 2016

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Greater physical activity and cardiorespiratory fitness are associated with reduced age-related cognitive decline and lower risk for dementia. However, significant gaps remain in the understanding of how physical activity and fitness protect the brain from adverse effects of brain aging. The primary goal of the current study was to empirically evaluate the independent relationships between physical activity and fitness with functional brain health among healthy older adults, as measured by the functional connectivity of cognitively and clinically relevant resting state networks. To build context for fitness and physical activity associations in older adults, we first demonstrate that young adults have greater within-network functional connectivity across a broad range of cortical association networks. Based on these results and previous research, we predicted that individual differences in fitness and physical activity would be most strongly associated with functional integrity of the networks most sensitive to aging. Consistent with this prediction, and extending on previous research, we showed that cardiorespiratory fitness has a positive relationship with functional connectivity of several cortical networks associated with age-related decline, and effects were strongest in the Default Mode Network (DMN). Furthermore, our results suggest that the positive association of fitness with brain function can occur independent of habitual physical activity. Overall, our findings provide further support that cardiorespiratory fitness is an important factor in moderating the adverse effects of aging on cognitively and clinically relevant functional brain networks.

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“…Cross-sectional studies of older adults have generally reported a positive association of CRF with gray matter volume (Boots et al, 2015; Bugg and Head, 2011; Erickson et al, 2007; Gordon et al, 2008; Weinstein et al, 2012) as well as with cognitive performance in the domains of executive function and memory (Barnes et al, 2003; Hayes et al, 2016). Interestingly, reliable CRF effects have been observed primarily within lateral prefrontal and parietal gray matter regions (Erickson et al, 2014; Hayes et al, 2014), cortical areas most vulnerable to age-related atrophy (Fjell et al, 2009b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cardiorespiratory fitness is differentially associated with cortical thickness in young and older adults

et al. 2017

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Aging is associated with reductions in gray matter volume and cortical thickness. One factor that may play a role in mitigating age-associated brain decline is cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF). Although previous work has identified a positive association between CRF and gray matter volume, the relationship between CRF and cortical thickness, which serves as a more sensitive indicator of gray matter integrity, has yet to be assessed in healthy young and older adults. To address this gap in the literature, 32 young and 29 older adults completed treadmill-based progressive maximal exercise testing to assess CRF (peak VO2), and structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to determine vertex-wise surface-based cortical thickness metrics. Results indicated a significant CRF by age group interaction such that Peak VO2 was associated with thicker cortex in older adults but with thinner cortex in young adults. Notably, the majority of regions demonstrating a positive association between peak VO2 and cortical thickness in older adults overlapped with brain regions showing significant age-related cortical thinning. Further, when older adults were categorized as high or low fit based on normative data, we observed a stepwise pattern whereby cortex was thickest in young adults, intermediate in high fit older adults and thinnest in low fit older adults. Overall, these results support the notion that CRF-related neuroplasticity may reduce although not eliminate age-related cortical atrophy.

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Cardiorespiratory fitness is associated with brain structure, cognition, and mood in a middle-aged cohort at risk for Alzheimer’s disease

Cited by 90 publications

References 45 publications

Exercise intensity modulates the change in cerebral blood flow following aerobic exercise in chronic stroke

Exercise intensity modulates the change in cerebral blood flow following aerobic exercise in chronic stroke

Fitness, but not physical activity, is related to functional integrity of brain networks associated with aging

Cardiorespiratory fitness is differentially associated with cortical thickness in young and older adults

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