Nature Neuroscience6, 309 - 315 (2003)
Published online: 27 January 2003; | doi:10.1038/nn1008
Mapping cortical change across the human life span
Elizabeth R. Sowell1, Bradley S. Peterson2, Paul M. Thompson1, Suzanne E. Welcome1, Amy L. Henkenius1
& Arthur W. Toga1
1
University of California at Los Angeles, Laboratory of Neuro Imaging, Department of Neurology, 710 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA.
2
Columbia College of Physicians & Surgeons Department of Psychiatry and the New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, New York 10032, USA.
We used magnetic resonance imaging and cortical matching algorithms to map gray matter density (GMD) in 176 normal individuals ranging in age from 7 to 87 years. We found a significant, nonlinear decline in GMD with age, which was most rapid between 7 and about 60 years, over dorsal frontal and parietal association cortices on both the lateral and interhemispheric surfaces. Age effects were inverted in the left posterior temporal region, where GMD gain continued up to age 30 and then rapidly declined. The trajectory of maturational and aging effects varied considerably over the cortex. Visual, auditory and limbic cortices, which are known to myelinate early, showed a more linear pattern of aging than the frontal and parietal neocortices, which continue myelination into adulthood. Our findings also indicate that the posterior temporal cortices, primarily in the left hemisphere, which typically support language functions, have a more protracted course of maturation than any other cortical region.
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