Cortical thickness across the lifespan: Data from 17,075 healthy individuals aged 3–90 years

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • Karolinska Schizophrenia Project Consortium (KaSP) - (Author)
  • Division of Psychological and Social Medicine and Developmental Neurosciences
  • Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
  • University of British Columbia
  • King's College London (KCL)
  • University College London
  • Boys Town National Research Hospital
  • University of Oslo
  • Diakonhjemmet Hospital
  • Karolinska Institutet
  • Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU)
  • Leiden University
  • Bournemouth University
  • University of Galway
  • Sisters Hospitallers Research Foundation
  • CIBER - Center for Biomedical Research Network
  • Radiologics, Inc.
  • Umeå University
  • University of Iowa
  • Heidelberg University 
  • University of Barcelona
  • August Pi i Sunyer Biomedical Research Institute
  • University of Würzburg
  • University of Bari
  • University of Lübeck
  • University of Pennsylvania
  • Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis
  • University of New South Wales
  • Utrecht University
  • Radboud University Nijmegen
  • Universidade de São Paulo
  • Harvard University
  • Massachusetts General Hospital
  • Georgia State University
  • Cardiff University
  • New York University
  • Region Stockholm
  • Keck School of Medicine at University of Southern California
  • KU Leuven
  • University of New Mexico
  • The Mind Research Network
  • University of Montreal
  • University of Tübingen
  • University of Seville
  • Université de Bordeaux
  • Erasmus University Rotterdam
  • University of California at San Diego
  • University of Münster
  • University of Cape Town

Abstract

Delineating the association of age and cortical thickness in healthy individuals is critical given the association of cortical thickness with cognition and behavior. Previous research has shown that robust estimates of the association between age and brain morphometry require large-scale studies. In response, we used cross-sectional data from 17,075 individuals aged 3–90 years from the Enhancing Neuroimaging Genetics through Meta-Analysis (ENIGMA) Consortium to infer age-related changes in cortical thickness. We used fractional polynomial (FP) regression to quantify the association between age and cortical thickness, and we computed normalized growth centiles using the parametric Lambda, Mu, and Sigma method. Interindividual variability was estimated using meta-analysis and one-way analysis of variance. For most regions, their highest cortical thickness value was observed in childhood. Age and cortical thickness showed a negative association; the slope was steeper up to the third decade of life and more gradual thereafter; notable exceptions to this general pattern were entorhinal, temporopolar, and anterior cingulate cortices. Interindividual variability was largest in temporal and frontal regions across the lifespan. Age and its FP combinations explained up to 59% variance in cortical thickness. These results may form the basis of further investigation on normative deviation in cortical thickness and its significance for behavioral and cognitive outcomes.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)431-451
Number of pages21
JournalHuman brain mapping
Volume43
Issue number1
Publication statusPublished - Jan 2022
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

PubMed 33595143
ORCID /0000-0002-1753-7811/work/168720426
ORCID /0000-0003-2132-4445/work/168720440

Keywords

Keywords

  • aging, cortical thickness, development, trajectories