Trying to Put the Puzzle Together: Age and Performance Level Modulate the Neural Response to Increasing Task Load within Left Rostral Prefrontal Cortex

Age-related working memory decline is associated with functional cerebral changes within prefrontal cortex (PFC). Kind and meaning of these changes are heavily discussed since they depend on performance level and task load. Hence, we investigated the effects of age, performance level, and load on sp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:BioMed research international 2015-01, Vol.2015 (2015), p.1-11
Main Authors: Bauer, Eva, Toepper, Max, Sammer, G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Age
Aged
Aging - physiology
Brain research
Causes of
Compensation
Female
Health aspects
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Imaging - methods
Male
Medical imaging
Memory
Memory, Disorders of
Memory, Short-Term - physiology
Middle Aged
Neuropsychological Tests
NMR
Nuclear magnetic resonance
Older people
Prefrontal cortex
Prefrontal Cortex - physiopathology
Psychotherapy
Reaction Time - physiology
Short-term memory
Studies
Task Performance and Analysis
Young Adult
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Summary:Age-related working memory decline is associated with functional cerebral changes within prefrontal cortex (PFC). Kind and meaning of these changes are heavily discussed since they depend on performance level and task load. Hence, we investigated the effects of age, performance level, and load on spatial working memory retrieval-related brain activation in different subregions of the PFC. 19 younger (Y) and 21 older (O) adults who were further subdivided into high performers (HP) and low performers (LP) performed a modified version of the Corsi Block-Tapping test during fMRI. Brain data was analyzed by a 4 (groups: YHP, OHP, YLP, and OLP) × 3 (load levels: loads 4, 5, and 6) ANOVA. Results revealed significant group × load interaction effects within rostral dorsolateral and ventrolateral PFC. YHP showed a flexible neural upregulation with increasing load, whereas YLP reached a resource ceiling at a moderate load level. OHP showed a similar (though less intense) pattern as YHP and may have compensated age-effects at high task load. OLP showed neural inefficiency at low and no upregulation at higher load. Our findings highlight the relevance of age and performance level for load-dependent activation within rostral PFC. Results are discussed in the context of the compensation-related utilization of neural circuits hypothesis (CRUNCH) and functional PFC organization.
ISSN:2314-6133
2314-6141
DOI:10.1155/2015/415458