IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v16y2025i1d10.1038_s41467-025-63628-3.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Age-related constraints on the spatial geometry of the brain

Author

Listed:
  • Yuritza Y. Escalante

    (University of California)

  • Jenna N. Adams

    (University of California)

  • Michael A. Yassa

    (University of California)

  • Niels Janssen

    (Universidad de La Laguna
    Universidad de La Laguna
    Universidad de La Laguna)

Abstract

Age-related structural brain changes may be better captured by assessing complex spatial geometric differences rather than isolated changes to individual regions. We applied an analytic method to quantify age-related changes to the spatial anatomy of the brain by measuring expansion and compression of global brain shape and the distance between cross-hemisphere homologous regions. To test how global brain shape and regional distances are affected by aging, we analyzed 2603 structural MRIs (range: 30−97 years). Increasing age was associated with global expansion across inferior-anterior gradients, global compression across superior-posterior gradients, and regional expansion between frontotemporal homologues. Specific patterns of global and regional expansion and compression were further associated with clinical impairment and distinctly related to deficits in various cognitive domains. These findings suggest that changes to the complex spatial anatomy and geometry of the aging brain may be associated with reduced efficiency and cognitive dysfunction in older adults.

Suggested Citation

  • Yuritza Y. Escalante & Jenna N. Adams & Michael A. Yassa & Niels Janssen, 2025. "Age-related constraints on the spatial geometry of the brain," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-14, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-63628-3
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-63628-3
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-63628-3
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/s41467-025-63628-3?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-63628-3. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.