Accelerating+Cortical+Thinning+Unique+to+Dementia+or+Universal+in+Aging?

Fjell, Anders, Wastlye, Lars, Grydeland, Hakon, Amlien, Inge, Espeseth, Thomas, Reinvang, Ivar, Raz, Naftali, Dale, Anders, Walhovd, Kristine. “Accelerating Cortical Thinning: Unique to Dementia or Universal in Aging?” //Cerebral Cortex// 24.4 (2014): 919-934. Web 14 Jun. 2016.

Using low-risk adults and already diagnoses Alzheimer’s patients (AD), this study dove into the thinning of the cortical thickness and whether or not this was normal in both cases: natural aging and with neurodegenerative diseases. Through three different groups for specific studying, “age trajectories of cortical thickness, effects undetected AD, and atrophy in AD-vulnerable regions,” the results were all cross-examined and analyzed. This study qualifies memory function and change in both types of participants, but in many cases these cortical changes may not be related to AD or may not need to be to cause memory decline. It was also stated that atrophy in AD-vulnerable areas is possibly only due to normal aging, without the presence of neurodegenerative diseases. The lateral frontal, temporoparietal, superior temporal, and lateral occipital cortices on the lateral side, as well as the isthmus of the cingulate/retrosplenial cortex, the fusiform gyrus, and the right cuneus and left lingual gyrus all showed cortical thinning while there was “preservation or even thickening” of the middle and anterior cingulate and the insula.

The interesting part of this study is that they confidently state that degeneration in the AD-vulnerable areas is also a part of the natural aging process and may not be related to disease at all. With a disease like Alzheimer’s, the degeneration may happen faster or even slower depending on the patient. Again, this talks about the parts of the brain that change, specifically with cortical levels, which align with the other studies that discuss this feature.