Measuring relative differences in socioeconomic status on hippocampal subfield volume and relational memory performance in a developmental sample

Poster Session E - Monday, April 15, 2024, 2:30 – 4:30 pm EDT, Sheraton Hall ABC

Meghan K. Ramirez¹, Abi Heller-Wight¹, Connor Phipps¹, Jennifer Sexton^1,2, Anna Wilhelm¹, Carolyn E. Nagengast¹, Emma A. Armbruster¹, Arthur Maerlender³, Vaishali Phatak¹, Daniel L. Murman¹, David E. Warren¹; ¹University of Nebraska Medical Center, ²University of Nebraska - Omaha, ³University of Nebraska - Lincoln

Socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with differences in structural and functional brain development. Specifically, SES has been linked to individual variability in memory abilities as well as structural development of the hippocampus, a brain structure necessary for memory. Here we investigate the relationship between SES, hippocampal-dependent relational memory, and hippocampal subfield volume (HcSubV) by utilizing preliminary data from the Polygenic Risk of Alzheimer’s disease in Nebraska Kids (PRANK) study. Periadolescent children (N=114) completed an MRI and a relational subsequent memory (RSM) task where they studied pairs of common objects followed by a memory test for the studied pairs. Here, we tested associations between HcSubV, RSM, and SES. SES was operationalized using the income to needs ratio (INR). We found HcSubV of the left dentate gyrus (p=.048) and left hippocampal tail (p=.014), but not INR, were associated with RSM performance. Then, we performed a median split of our sample based on INR. There were no significant relationships of interest identified in the high INR group (N=52). However, several statistically significant correlations were observed in the low INR group (N=62). RSM performance was associated with low INR (p=.038) and total HcSubV (p=.040). Further investigation into this RSM-HcSubV relationship identified several left-lateralized HcSubV associations including left dentate gyrus (p=.021), total left hippocampus (p=.029), left hippocampal tail (p=.029), and left cornu ammonis 1 (CA1) (p=.043) volumes. These preliminary novel findings extend prior work on SES, memory, and hippocampal volumetrics by demonstrating that low relative SES may be selectively associated with memory and hippocampal volume.

Topic Area: LONG-TERM MEMORY: Development & aging