Inflammation, Cognition, and White Matter in Older Adults: An Examination by Race

Non-Latino Black adults have greater risk for Alzheimer's dementia compared to non-Latino White adults, possibly due to factors disproportionally affecting Black adults including cardiovascular disease (CVD). Chronic peripheral inflammation is implicated in both Alzheimer's dementia and CV...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Frontiers in aging neuroscience 2020-10, Vol.12, p.553998-553998
Main Authors: Boots, Elizabeth A, Castellanos, Karla J, Zhan, Liang, Barnes, Lisa L, Tussing-Humphreys, Lisa, Deoni, Sean C L, Lamar, Melissa
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aging
Alzheimer's disease
Anisotropy
Brain research
C-reactive protein
Cardiovascular diseases
Cognition & reasoning
Cognitive ability
Cytokines
Dementia
Dementia disorders
Diabetes
Executive function
Hispanic Americans
Inflammation
inflammatory markers
Information processing
Interleukin 1
Interleukin 6
Magnetic resonance imaging
Medical imaging
Memory
Myelin
neuroimaging
Neuroscience
Older people
Race
Racial differences
Regression analysis
Risk factors
Substantia alba
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Summary:Non-Latino Black adults have greater risk for Alzheimer's dementia compared to non-Latino White adults, possibly due to factors disproportionally affecting Black adults including cardiovascular disease (CVD). Chronic peripheral inflammation is implicated in both Alzheimer's dementia and CVD and is known to impact cognition and cerebral white matter, yet little work has examined these associations by race. This study examined associations between inflammation, cognition, and cerebral white matter generally, and by race. Eighty-six non-demented older Black and White participants (age = 69.03; 50% female; 45% Black participants) underwent fasting venipuncture, cognitive testing, and MRI. Serum was assayed for interleukin-6 (IL-6), C-reactive protein (CRP), and interleukin 1-beta. Cognitive domains included memory, executive function, and attention/information processing. MRI measures included white matter hyperintensity volumes (WMH) and quantification of white matter integrity in areas outside WMHs via DTI-derived fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity, as well as multi-component relaxometry derived myelin water fraction (MWF). Black and White participants did not differ on age, sex, or CVD risk. Separate linear regression models adjusting for relevant confounders revealed that higher IL-6 associated with lower executive function and higher CRP levels associated with lower FA and MWF. Stratified analyses revealed that these association were significant for Black participants only. These findings suggest that peripheral inflammation is inversely associated with select cognitive domains and white matter integrity (but not WMHs), particularly in older Black adults. It is important to consider race when investigating inflammatory associates of brain and behavior.
ISSN:1663-4365
1663-4365
DOI:10.3389/fnagi.2020.553998