Projects per year
Abstract
Objective: To investigate how associations between education and brain structure in older age were affected by adjusting for intelligence (IQ), measured at age 11.
Methods: We analysed years of full-time education and measures from an MRI brain scan at age 73 in 617 community-dwelling adults born in 1936. In addition to average and vertex-wise cortical thickness, we measured total brain atrophy and white matter tract fractional anisotropy. Associations between brain structure and education were tested, covarying for sex and vascular health; a second model also covaried for age 11 IQ.
Results: The significant relationship between education and average cortical thickness (β = 0.124, p = 0.004) was reduced by 23% when including age 11 IQ (β = 0.096, p = 0.041). Initial associations between longer education and greater vertex-wise cortical thickness were significant in bilateral temporal, medial-frontal, parietal, sensory and motor cortices. Accounting for childhood intelligence reduced the number of significant vertices by >90%; only bilateral anterior temporal associations remained. Neither education nor age 11 IQ were significantly associated with total brain atrophy or tract-averaged fractional anisotropy.
Conclusions: The association between years of education and brain structure ~60 years later was restricted to cortical thickness in this sample; however, the previously-reported associations between longer education and a thicker cortex are likely to be overestimates, both in terms of magnitude and distribution. This has implications for understanding, and possibly ameliorating, life-course brain health.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1820-1826 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | Neurology |
Volume | 87 |
Issue number | 17 |
Early online date | 24 Sept 2016 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Oct 2016 |
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Dive into the research topics of 'Associations between education and brain structure at age 73 years, adjusted for age 11 IQ'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Projects
- 4 Finished
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Brain imaging and cognitive ageing in the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936: III
Wardlaw, J., Bastin, M. & Deary, I.
1/05/15 → 30/04/19
Project: Research
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RA2661 Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology Phase 2. Main Budget.
Deary, I., Gale, C., Holmes, M., Logie, P., Maclullich, A., Porteous, D., Seckl, J., Starr, J., Wardlaw, J. & Okely, J.
1/09/13 → 31/08/19
Project: Research
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Brain White mater imaging and cognitive ageing in the Lothian Birth Cohort of 1936:II
Deary, I., Bastin, M., Penke, L., Starr, J. & Wardlaw, J.
8/06/11 → 7/03/15
Project: Research
Profiles
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Simon Cox
- School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences - Personal Chair of Brain and Cognitive Ageing & Sir Henry Dal
- Edinburgh Neuroscience
Person: Academic: Research Active