Quantifying functional brain aging trajectories at scale remains a fundamental challenge due to the scanner-bound limitations of traditional neuroimaging. Here, we deploy whole-head Time-Domain functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (TD-fNIRS) to map task-evoked cortical dynamics during a 30-minute cognitive battery across the adult lifespan (N = 302, age 18 to 87, 45% racial or ethnic minority). We developed a robust General Cognitive Factor (GCF) tracking age-related performance decline (r = -0.57, p < 0.0001). Analysis of brain activity patterns revealed systemic, age-dependent neural dedifferentiation, highlighting a distinct neurocognitive inflection point around age 55. Prior to this threshold, high performers exhibit more variable neural activation across tasks; post-age 55, high performance is sustained through reduced spatial differentiation, signaling a compensatory strategy. Furthermore, subjective anxiety and depression disrupt these compensatory mechanisms, and subjective cognitive complaints register as distinct neural signatures before behavioral GCF decline manifests. Together, these findings establish a scalable framework for mapping functional brain health across the human lifespan, uncovering the neural mechanics of cognitive resilience and vulnerability before behavioral decline manifests.
Chekin, Y., Decker, D., Dubois, J., Field, R. M., Gundran, A., Jewison, A., Koch, E. M., Lerner, G., M. Aghajan, Z., Miller, N., Perdue, K. L., Taylor, M.
Advertisement
Stats
- Recommendations n/a n/a positive of 0 vote(s)
- Views 11
- Comments 0