Access Type

Open Access Thesis

Date of Award

January 2024

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.A.

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Jessica S. Damoiseaux

Abstract

Measures of the brain’s microstructure may be more sensitive markers of aging than macrostructural measures. However, it remains unclear exactly how gray matter microstructure changes during aging and how this relates to changes in macrostructure. The present study evaluated how neurite density, orientation dispersion, and gray matter volume changed over a three-year period in a sample of healthy older adults. The role of age in modifying structural change within the hippocampus, precuneus, and rostral anterior cingulate cortex was also considered. Repeated measures general linear models additionally evaluated whether degree of change in microstructure between the first two measurement occasions modified change in macrostructure over the full study period. While structural change over time did occur within some regions, overall the results of the present analyses did not support the notion that microstructural metrics are more sensitive to change than macrostructure. Furthermore, change in microstructure was unrelated to change in macrostructure.

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