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Frontoparietal network segregation and associative memory in aging

Poster Session A - Saturday, March 7, 3:00 – 5:00 pm, Fairview/Kitsilano Ballrooms

Emma Carlson¹ (emmacarlson@brandeis.edu), Claire Ciampa², Thomas Morin^1,3, Jacob Hooker³, Anne Berry^1,4; ¹Department of Psychology, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02453, USA, ²Department of Biology, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02453, USA, ³Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02155, USA, ⁴Volen Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02453, USA

Successful aging is associated with the maintenance of segregated brain networks. Measures in the frontoparietal cognitive control network (FPCN) have been identified as mechanisms supporting cognitive resilience in healthy and pathological aging. Aging is associated with changes in dopamine function, which have been linked to altered FPCN functional connectivity and are proposed to contribute to declines in associative memory in older age. We examined associations among FPCN segregation, dopamine, and associative memory in 44 cognitively unimpaired older adults (mean age=69, range 60 – 82, 24 female). Participants underwent MR-PET scanning to measure FPCN segregation (resting state) and D2/3 receptor availability ([11C]raclopride). Outside of the scanner, participants completed the Face-Name Associative Memory Exam, which is a sensitive tool for screening clinically relevant age-related decline. In our sample, women showed superior associative memory performance (t=2.55, p=0.01) and higher FPCN network segregation (t=2.42, p=.02). We tested the sensitivity of FPCN segregation to endogenous dopamine function and responsivity to dopamine augmentation (20 mg oral methylphenidate). FPCN segregation was not correlated with D2/3 receptor availability (t=0.25, p=.81) and did not significantly change on methylphenidate relative to placebo (t=-0.71, p=0.49). However, higher FPCN segregation was associated with better associative memory (t=2.51, p=.01), and this relationship did not differ by drug condition (t=-1.24, p=0.22). Though our analyses do not support a role of dopamine, our findings link FPCN segregation with memory in aging and point to differences in FPCN segregation as a candidate mechanism underlying sex differences in associative memory.

Topic Area: LONG-TERM MEMORY: Development & aging