Author(s)

N. A. Royle, T. Booth, M. C. Valdes Hernandez, L. Penke, C. Murray, A. J. Gow, S. M. Maniega, J. Starr, M. E. Bastin, I. J. Deary, J. M. Wardlaw

ISBN

1558-1497 (Electronic)0197-4580 (Linking)

Publication year

2013

Periodical

Neurobiol Aging

Periodical Number

12

Volume

34

Pages

2726-33

Author Address

Brain Research Imaging Centre, Neuroimaging Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK; Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK; Scottish Imaging Network, A Platform for Scientific Excellence (SINAPSE) Collaboration, Edinburgh, UK; Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK. Electronic address: nat.royle@ed.ac.uk.

Full version

Brain tissue deterioration is a significant contributor to lower cognitive ability in later life; however, few studies have appropriate data to establish how much influence prior brain volume and prior cognitive performance have on this association. We investigated the associations between structural brain imaging biomarkers, including an estimate of maximal brain volume, and detailed measures of cognitive ability at age 73 years in a large (N = 620), generally healthy, community-dwelling population. Cognitive ability data were available from age 11 years. We found positive associations (r) between general cognitive ability and estimated brain volume in youth (male, 0.28; females, 0.12), and in measured brain volume in later life (males, 0.27; females, 0.26). Our findings show that cognitive ability in youth is a strong predictor of estimated prior and measured current brain volume in old age but that these effects were the same for both white and gray matter. As 1 of the largest studies of associations between brain volume and cognitive ability with normal aging, this work contributes to the wider understanding of how some early-life factors influence cognitive aging.