Longitudinal Changes of Hippocampal Subfield Volumes from Middle Childhood to Late Adulthood

Poster Session B - Sunday, April 14, 2024, 8:00 – 10:00 am EDT, Sheraton Hall ABC

Roya Homayouni¹ (rhomayouni@wayne.edu), Samaah Saifullah¹, Alexis Chargo¹, Kelsey L. Canada¹, Naftali Raz^2,3, Noa Ofen^1,4, Ana M. Daugherty¹; ¹Wayne State University, MI, ²Stony Brook University, NY, ³Center for Lifespan Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, ⁴Center for Vital Longevity, University of Texas, TX

The hippocampus is crucial for memory function across all ages and is comprised of distinct subfields: dentate gyrus (DG), cornu ammonis sectors (CA1-3), and subiculum. The direction and magnitude of age differences in hippocampal subfield volumes vary over the lifespan. Yet, the evidence on change and variability in lifespan developmental trajectories is sparse. We examined lifespan trends in subfield volumes and age-group differences in change in a large sample (n=474 at baseline, n=189 at follow-up, two occasions, mean delay=2.5 years) of healthy children (ages 5-18.9 years), adults (ages 19-49.9 years) and older adults (ages 50-73.9 years). The association of age with magnitude and direction of change in CA1-2 and subiculum volumes differed among age groups but was comparable in DG-CA3 volumes. In childhood, subfield volumes did not significantly change on average, but change in subiculum volumes linked to age with a shift from volume gain to shrinkage towards adulthood. In adulthood, CA1-2 volumes increased, but the volumetric gain attenuated towards shrinkage evident by age 50 years. DG-CA3 and subiculum volumes shrunk in old adulthood and evinced a trend for acceleration towards the age 70 years. Differential longitudinal changes of subfield volumes across the lifespan likely reflect different neural processes depending on the period of life from development to aging. This may have implications for constructing theoretical models of lifespan memory development. Building on these results, a planned longitudinal study of memory will provide insight into functional relevance of lifespan changes in subfield volumes.

Topic Area: LONG-TERM MEMORY: Development & aging