Paper Info
Title
Grammar learning in older adults is linked to white matter microstructure and functional connectivity.
Abstract
Age-related decline in cognitive function has been linked to alterations of white matter and functional brain connectivity. With regard to language, aging has been shown to be associated with impaired syntax processing, but the underlying structural and functional correlates are poorly understood. In the present study, we used an artificial grammar learning (AGL) task to determine the ability to extract grammatical rules from new material in healthy older adults. White matter microstructure and resting-state functional connectivity (FC) of task-relevant brain regions were assessed using multimodal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). AGL performance correlated positively with fractional anisotropy (FA) underlying left and right Brodmann areas (BA) 44/45 and in tracts originating from left BA 44/45. An inverse relationship was found between task performance and FC of left and right BA 44/45, linking lower performance to stronger inter-hemispheric functional coupling. Our results suggest that white matter microstructure underlying specific prefrontal regions and their functional coupling affect acquisition of syntactic knowledge in the aging brain, offering further insight into mechanisms of functional decline in older adults.
Year
DOI
Venue
2012
10.1016/j.neuroimage.2012.05.074
NeuroImage
Keywords
Field
DocType
Diffusion tensor imaging,Fractional anisotropy,Probabilistic tractography,Resting-state functional connectivity,Artificial grammar learning
Developmental psychology,Diffusion MRI,Artificial grammar learning,White matter,Fractional anisotropy,Psychology,Cognitive psychology,Electrical brain stimulation,Aging brain,Cognition,Syntax
Journal
Volume
Issue
ISSN
62
3
1053-8119
Citations 
PageRank 
References 
3
0.39
14
Authors
5
Name
Order
Citations
PageRank
Daria Antonenko162.16
Marcus Meinzer2385.88
Robert Lindenberg381.84
A Veronica Witte4483.79
Agnes Flöel5517.91