Sleep is Vital to the Aging Brain, Including Cognitive Function: Infographic [Chinese]

Is it possible to enhance neural and cognitive function with cognitive training techniques? Can we delay age-related decline in cognitive function with interventions and stave off Alzheimer's disease? Does an aged brain really have the capacity to change in response to stimulation? In the present paper, we consider the neuroplasticity of the aging brain, that is, the brain's ability to increase capacity in response to sustained experience. We argue that, although there is some neural deterioration that occurs with age, the brain has the capacity to increase neural activity and develop neural scaffolding to regulate cognitive function. We suggest that increase in neural volume in response to cognitive training or experience is a clear indicator of change, but that changes in activation in response to cognitive training may be evidence of strategy change rather than indicative of neural plasticity. We note that the effect of cognitive training is surprisingly durable over time, but that the evidence that training effects transfer to other cognitive domains is relatively limited. We review evidence which suggests that engagement in an environment that requires sustained cognitive effort may facilitate cognitive function.

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A Review and Reappraisal of the Default Network in Normal Aging and Dementia

Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Psychology ◽

10.1093/acrefore/9780190236557.013.384 ◽

2019 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Jessica R. Andrews-Hanna ◽

Matthew D. Grilli ◽

Muireann Irish

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Brain Aging ◽

Strong Support ◽

Well Being ◽

Normal Aging ◽

Aging Brain ◽

Default Network ◽

Pathological Aging ◽

Age Related

The brain’s default network (DN) has received considerable interest in the context of so-called “normal” and pathological aging. Findings have generally been couched in support of a pessimistic view of brain aging, marked by substantial loss of structural brain integrity accompanied by a host of impairments in brain and cognitive function. A critical look at the literature, however, reveals that the standard loss of integrity, loss of function (LILF) view in normal aging may not necessarily hold with respect to the DN and the internally guided functions it supports. Many internally guided processes subserved by the DN are preserved or enhanced in cognitively healthy older adults. Moreover, differences in motivational, contextual, and physiological factors between young and older adults likely influence the extant neuroimaging and cognitive findings. Accordingly, normal aging can be viewed as a series of possibly adaptive cognitive and DN-related alterations that bolster cognitive function and promote socioemotional well-being and stability in a stage of life noted for change. On the other hand, the available evidence reveals strong support for the LILF view of the DN in neurodegenerative disorders, whereby syndromes such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and semantic dementia (SD), characterized by progressive atrophy to distinct DN subsystems, display distinct aberrations in autobiographical and semantic cognition. Taken together, these findings call for more naturalistic, age-appropriate, and longitudinal paradigms when investigating neurocognitive changes in aging and to adequately assess and control for differences in non-neural factors that may obscure “true” effects of normal and pathological aging. A shift in the framework with which age-related alterations in internally guided cognition are interpreted may shed important light on the neurocognitive mechanisms differentiating healthy and pathological aging, leading to a more complete picture of the aging brain in all its complexity.

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Sleep is Vital to the Aging Brain, Including Cognitive Function: Infographic [Arabic]

10.26419/pia.00014.006 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Function ◽

Aging Brain

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Bacopa monnierias an Antioxidant Therapy to Reduce Oxidative Stress in the Aging Brain

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2015/615384 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 2015 ◽

pp. 1-9 ◽

Cited By ~ 24

Author(s):

Tamara Simpson ◽

Matthew Pase ◽

Con Stough

Keyword(s):

Oxidative Stress ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Neuronal Cell Death ◽

Neuronal Cell ◽

Bacopa Monnieri ◽

Aging Brain ◽

Resonance Spectroscopy ◽

Age Related

The detrimental effect of neuronal cell death due to oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction has been implicated in age-related cognitive decline and neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease. The Indian herbBacopa monnieriis a dietary antioxidant, with animal andin vitrostudies indicating several modes of action that may protect the brain against oxidative damage. In parallel, several studies using the CDRI08 extract have shown that extracts ofBacopa monnieriimprove cognitive function in humans. The biological mechanisms of this cognitive enhancement are unknown. In this review we discuss the animal studies andin vivoevidence forBacopa monnierias a potential therapeutic antioxidant to reduce oxidative stress and improve cognitive function. We suggest that future studies incorporate neuroimaging particularly magnetic resonance spectroscopy into their randomized controlled trials to better understand whether changes in antioxidant statusin vivocause improvements in cognitive function.

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The Locus Coeruleus: Essential for Maintaining Cognitive Function and the Aging Brain

Trends in Cognitive Sciences ◽

10.1016/j.tics.2016.01.001 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 20 (3) ◽

pp. 214-226 ◽

Cited By ~ 136

Author(s):

Mara Mather ◽

Carolyn W. Harley

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Function ◽

Locus Coeruleus ◽

Aging Brain

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Changes in cognitive function in patients with diabetes mellitus

Orvosi Hetilap ◽

10.1556/oh.2012.29319 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 153 (9) ◽

pp. 323-329 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Barbara Szémán ◽

Géza Nagy ◽

Tímea Varga ◽

Anna Veres-Székely ◽

Mária Sasvári ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Diabetes Mellitus ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Cognitive Decline ◽

Amyloid Β ◽

Microvascular Disease ◽

Aging Brain ◽

Supporting Evidence ◽

Patients With Diabetes ◽

The Central Nervous System ◽

Psychomotor Efficiency

Patients with diabetes are approximately 1.5 times more likely to experience cognitive decline than individuals without diabetes mellitus. Most of the data suggest that patients with diabetes have reduced performance in numerous domains of cognitive function. In patients with type 1 diabetes, specific and global deficits involving speed of psychomotor efficiency, information processing, mental flexibility, attention, and visual perception seem to be present, while in patients with type 2 diabetes an increase in memory deficits, a reduction in psychomotor speed, and reduced frontal lobe (executive) functions have been found. The complex pathophysiology of changes in the central nervous system in diabetes has not yet been fully elucidated. It is important to consider the patient’s age at the onset of diabetes, the glycemic control status, and the presence of diabetic complications. Neurological consequences of diabetes appear parallel to those observed in the aging brain. Neuroimaging studies highlight several structural cerebral changes, cortical and subcortical atrophy, beside increased leukoaraiosis that occurs in association with diabetes. There is supporting evidence from many hypotheses to explain the pathophysiology of cognitive decline associated with diabetes. The main hypotheses pointing to the potential, implied mechanisms involve hyperglycemia, hypoglycemia, microvascular disease, insulin resistance, hyperinsulinism, hyperphosphorylation of tau protein, and amyloid-β deposition. Orv. Hetil., 2012, 153, 323–329.

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Intake of Products Containing Anthocyanins, Flavanols, and Flavanones, and Cognitive Function: A Narrative Review

Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience ◽

10.3389/fnagi.2021.640381 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 ◽

Author(s):

Samantha L. Gardener ◽

Stephanie R. Rainey-Smith ◽

Michael Weinborn ◽

Catherine P. Bondonno ◽

Ralph N. Martins

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Function ◽

Intracellular Signaling ◽

Healthy Aging ◽

Receptor Activation ◽

Cognitive Outcomes ◽

Future Research ◽

Aging Brain ◽

Dietary Interventions ◽

Intracellular Signaling Pathway ◽

Age Related

The purpose of this review is to examine human research studies published within the past 6 years which evaluate the role of anthocyanin, flavanol, and flavanone consumption in cognitive function, and to discuss potential mechanisms of action underlying any observed benefits. Evidence to date suggests the consumption of flavonoid-rich foods, such as berries and cocoa, may have the potential to limit, or even reverse, age-related declines in cognition. Over the last 6 years, the flavonoid subgroups of anthocyanins, flavanols, and flavanones have been shown to be beneficial in terms of conferring neuroprotection. The mechanisms by which flavonoids positively modulate cognitive function are yet to be fully elucidated. Postulated mechanisms include both direct actions such as receptor activation, neurotrophin release and intracellular signaling pathway modulation, and indirect actions such as enhancement of cerebral blood flow. Further intervention studies conducted in diverse populations with sufficient sample sizes and long durations are required to examine the effect of consumption of flavonoid groups on clinically relevant cognitive outcomes. As populations continue to focus on adopting healthy aging strategies, dietary interventions with flavonoids remains a promising avenue for future research. However, many questions are still to be answered, including identifying appropriate dosage, timeframes for intake, as well as the best form of flavonoids, before definitive conclusions can be drawn about the extent to which their consumption can protect the aging brain.

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