Multi-modal neuroimaging of dual-task walking: Structural MRI and fNIRS analysis reveals prefrontal grey matter volume moderation of brain activation in older adults

Wagshul, Mark E.; Lucas, Melanie; Ye, Kenny; İzzetoğlu, Meltem; Holtzer, Roee

doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.01.045

Cited by 58 publications

(56 citation statements)

References 105 publications

(173 reference statements)

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“…This may be mainly due to the simplicity of the application over hairless areas and can be overcome with better probe designs. Furthermore, differences in cerebral activation patterns detected by fNIRS could be actually related to structural alterations, as recently reported in an MRI-fNIRS study (Wagshul et al, 2019) where higher activation in healthy older adults during DT was related to reduced cortical volumes, especially in bilateral superior and rostral-middle frontal cortex. More evidence is needed supporting this concept.…”

Section: Methodological Aspects and Limitationssupporting

confidence: 57%

Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy to Study Cerebral Hemodynamics in Older Adults During Cognitive and Motor Tasks: A Review

Udina

Avtzi

Durdurán

et al. 2020

Front. Aging Neurosci.

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The integrity of the frontal areas of the brain, specifically the prefrontal cortex, are critical to preserve cognition and mobility in late life. Prefrontal cortex regions are involved in executive functions and gait control and have been related to the performance of dual-tasks. Dual-task performance assessment may help identify older adults at risk of negative health outcomes. As an alternative to neuroimaging techniques that do not allow assessment during actual motion, functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a non-invasive technique that can assess neural activation through the measurement of cortical oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin levels, while the person is performing a motor task in a natural environment as well as during cognitive tasks. The aim of this review was to describe the use of fNIRS to study frontal lobe hemodynamics during cognitive, motor and dual-tasks in older adults. From the 46 included publications, 20 studies used only cognitive tasks, three studies used motor tasks and 23 used dual-tasks. Our findings suggest that fNIRS detects changes in frontal activation in older adults (cognitively healthy and mild cognitive impairment), especially while performing cognitive and dual-tasks. In both the comparison between older and younger adults, and in people with different neurological conditions, compared to healthier controls, the prefrontal cortex seems to experience a higher activation, which could be interpreted in the context of proposed neural inefficiency and limited capacity models. Further research is needed to establish standardized fNIRS protocols, study the cerebral hemodynamic in different neurological and systemic conditions that might influence cortical activation and explore its role in predicting incident health outcomes such as dementia.

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Section: Methodological Aspects and Limitationssupporting

confidence: 57%

Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy to Study Cerebral Hemodynamics in Older Adults During Cognitive and Motor Tasks: A Review

Udina

Avtzi

Durdurán

et al. 2020

Front. Aging Neurosci.

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“…A recent review emphasized the importance of examining brain structure and function relations in aging and MCI using MRI methods [57]. Previous work demonstrated that white matter integrity [58] and grey matter volume [59] moderated fNIRS-derived HbO 2 levels assessed during active walking in participants aged 65 or older. It would, therefore, be of importance to examine whether the structural integrity of the brain also influences the changes in fNIRS-derived HbO 2 due to walking conditions and training in participants with MCI.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mild Cognitive Impairments Attenuate Prefrontal Cortex Activations during Walking in Older Adults

İzzetoğlu

2020

Brain Sciences

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The presence of Mild Cognitive Impairments (MCI) is associated with worse gait performance. However, the effect of MCI on cortical control of gait, as assessed during active walking, is unknown. We hypothesized that MCI would be associated with attenuated activations and limited improvement in efficiency in the Prefrontal cortex (PFC) under cognitively-demanding walking conditions. Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) was used to assess Oxygenated Hemoglobin (HbO2) in the PFC during Single-Task-Walk (STW), cognitive interference (Alpha) and Dual-Task-Walk (DTW) conditions. Three repeated trials in each experimental condition were administered. Healthy control (n = 71; mean age = 76.82 ± 6.21 years; %female = 50.7) and MCI (n = 11; mean age = 78.27 ± 4.31 years; %female = 45.5) participants were included. The increase in HbO2 from STW to DTW was attenuated among MCI participants compared to controls (estimate = 0.505; p = 0.001). Whereas, among controls, HbO2 increased from Alpha to DTW, the opposite was observed among MCI participants (estimate = 0.903; p < 0.001). In DTW, the decline in HbO2 from trial 1 to 2 was attenuated in MCI participants compared to controls (estimate = 0.397; p = 0.008). Moreover, whereas HbO2 declined from trial 1 to 3 among controls, MCI participants showed the opposite trend (estimate = 0.946; p < 0.001). MCI was associated with attenuated brain activation patterns and compromised ability to improve PFC efficiency during dual-task walking.

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“…Several studies showed an association of DT performance (i.e., processing speed and executive function) and the gray matter volume of various areas of motor control including PFC ( Allali et al, 2019 ; Blumen et al, 2019 ; Tripathi et al, 2019 ). Albeit structure-function evaluations of these regions are scarce, first evidence indicates the potential moderator role, which brain prefrontal activation can have on volume loss in elderly ( Wagshul et al, 2019 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Neural Correlates of Stepping in Healthy Elderly: Parietal and Prefrontal Cortex Activation Reflects Cognitive-Motor Interference Effects

Reinhardt

Rus-Oswald

Bürki

et al. 2020

Front. Hum. Neurosci.

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Gait analysis involving cognitive-motor dual task (DT) is a diagnostic tool in geriatrics. Cognitive-motor interference effects during DT, such as decreased walking speed and increased step-to-step variability, have a high predictive value for fall risk and cognitive decline. Previously we showed the feasibility of DT during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) using an MRI-compatible stepping device. Here, we improved the DT-fMRI protocol with respect to task difficulty and signal robustness, making it more suitable for individualized analysis to better understand the neuronal substrates of cognitive-motor interference effects. Thirty healthy elderly subjects performed cognitive and motor single tasks (ST; stepping or finger tapping), as well as combined cognitive-motor DT during fMRI. After whole brain group level analysis, a region-of-interest (ROI) analysis and the computation of dual task costs (DTC = activation difference ratio ST/DT) at individual level were performed. Activations in the primary (M1) and secondary motor as well as in parietal and prefrontal cortex were measured at the group level during DT. Motor areas showed decreased activation whereas parietal and prefrontal areas showed increased activation in DT vs. ST. Stepping yielded more distinctive activations in DT vs. ST than finger tapping. At the individual level, the most robust activations (based on occurrence probability and signal strength) were measured in the stepping condition, in M1, supplementary motor area (SMA) and superior parietal lobule/intraparietal sulcus (SPL/IPS). The distribution of individual DTC in SPL/IPS during stepping suggested a separation of subjects in groups with high vs. low DTC. This study proposes an improved cognitive-motor DT-fMRI protocol and a standardized analysis routine of functional neuronal markers for cognitive-motor interference at the individual level.

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Multi-modal neuroimaging of dual-task walking: Structural MRI and fNIRS analysis reveals prefrontal grey matter volume moderation of brain activation in older adults

Cited by 58 publications

References 105 publications

Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy to Study Cerebral Hemodynamics in Older Adults During Cognitive and Motor Tasks: A Review

Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy to Study Cerebral Hemodynamics in Older Adults During Cognitive and Motor Tasks: A Review

Mild Cognitive Impairments Attenuate Prefrontal Cortex Activations during Walking in Older Adults

Neural Correlates of Stepping in Healthy Elderly: Parietal and Prefrontal Cortex Activation Reflects Cognitive-Motor Interference Effects

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