Dataset Information

Education is power: preserving cognition in the UK biobank.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Dementia is a debilitating syndrome characterized by the gradual loss of memory and cognitive function. Although there are currently limited, largely symptomatic treatments for the diseases that can lead to dementia, its onset may be prevented by identifying and modifying relevant life style risk factors. Commonly described modifiable risk factors include diet, physical inactivity, and educational attainment. Importantly, however, to maximize the utility of our understanding of these risk factors, tangible and meaningful changes to policy must also be addressed.

Objectives

Here, we aim to identify the mechanism(s) by which educational attainment influences cognition.

Methods

We investigated data from 502,357 individuals (M_age = 56.53, SD_age = 8.09, 54.40% female) from the UK Biobank cohort via Structural Equation Modelling to illustrate links between predictor variables (i.e., Townsend Deprivation Index, coastal distance, greenspace, years of education), covariates (i.e., participant age) and cognitive function as outcome variables (i.e., pairs-matching, trail-making task B, fluid intelligence).

Results

Our model demonstrated that higher education was associated with better cognitive performance (ps < 0.001), and this relationship was mediated by indices of deprivation, and coastal distance.

Conclusion

Accordingly, our model evinces the mediating effect of socioeconomic and environmental factors on the relationship between years of education and cognitive function. These results further demonstrate the utility and necessity of adapting public policy to encourage equitable access to education and other supports in deprived areas.

SUBMITTER: Tari B

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10568007 | biostudies-literature | 2023

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Education is power: preserving cognition in the UK biobank.

Tari Benjamin B Künzi Morgane M Pflanz C Patrick CP Raymont Vanessa V Bauermeister Sarah S

Frontiers in public health 20230928

<h4>Introduction</h4>Dementia is a debilitating syndrome characterized by the gradual loss of memory and cognitive function. Although there are currently limited, largely symptomatic treatments for the diseases that can lead to dementia, its onset may be prevented by identifying and modifying relevant life style risk factors. Commonly described modifiable risk factors include diet, physical inactivity, and educational attainment. Importantly, however, to maximize the utility of our understanding ...[more]

PMID: 37841724

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Project description:IntroductionRetinal vasculometry (RV) provides a neurovascular biomarker which may relate to cognitive status. However, the presence and form of association remains unclear and unexamined at scale.MethodsArtificial intelligence-enabled RV measures from 66,350 UK Biobank study participants were related to combined cognition scores. Differences in RV were examined per standard deviation (SD) increase in cognitive score, using multilevel linear regression, adjusted for age, sex, measurement center, ethnicity, and within-person RV clustering.ResultsOne hundred ten thousand two hundred eighty-two retinal images from 63,165 (95%) participants (mean age 56.6 years, 55.5% female) were analyzed. A one SD increase in cognition score was strongly associated with increased arteriolar width, arteriolar tortuosity, increased venular width particularly among those < 50 years and venular area among those > 50 years; also, inversely associated with venular tortuosity, and arteriolar and venular width variance.DiscussionThese easily accessible, affordable, and non-invasive RV measures should be evaluated further as an early predictor of future neurodegenerative disease.HighlightsHow cognitive status relates to retinal vasculometry (RV) measures remains uncertain and unexamined at scale.Using data from a large population-based study (UK Biobank) we show strong graded associations between cognitive status and RV, which contrast with some RV associations observed with aging. Specifically, increased arteriolar tortuosity, arteriolar and venular width (at younger ages), and area are positively associated, and venular tortuosity and arteriolar and venular width variability are inversely associated with higher cognitive status, all showing strong, graded, precise relationships. These associations appeared to be strongest for fluid intelligence and prospective memory tests.These easily accessible, non-invasive RV measures provide a neurovascular marker indicative of cognitive status, which should be evaluated as early predictors of neurodegenerative disease.

Project description:The association between adversity and cognition varies according to the specific adversity, when the adversity was experienced, and the cognitive domains investigated. Disentangling the effect of adversity and the underlying mechanistic pathway is therefore difficult. The association between adversity (i.e., maltreatment) accumulated over the life course and cognitive flexibility, as well as two potential mediators (i.e., intra-individual variability in reaction time and depression) of this association, were investigated. Data stem from the baseline population of the UK Biobank study (N = 73,489, Mdnage = 56, SDage = 7.628, 55.740% of women). Cumulative life course adversity (specifically maltreatment) was measured with items based on the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTS-5) and items adapted from the British Crime Survey. Depression was assessed with the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Intra-individual variability in reaction time was measured with a reaction time test "snap game" and the Trail Making Test A and B were used as a measure of cognitive flexibility. A path analysis was performed on these data. Higher cumulative adverse experiences were associated with lower performance in cognitive flexibility (β = .016, p < .001, 95% CI [0.009, 0.024]), and this effect was partly mediated by the level of depression (22.727% of the total effect of cumulative life course adversity on cognitive flexibility was mediated by depression (β = .005, p < .001, 95% CI [0.004, 0.007])). No association between cumulative life course adverse experiences and intra-individual variability in reaction time was found, nor was any indirect association between cumulative life course adversity and performance in cognitive flexibility via intra-individual variability in reaction time. The association between cumulative life course adversity, depression, and performance in cognitive flexibility has been highlighted. In contrast, no indirect effect between cumulative life course adversity and performance in cognitive flexibility via intra-individual variability in reaction time was found, suggesting that it is not a potential mechanism underlying the association between cumulative life course adversity and executive function.

Project description:Cognitive impairments and abnormal immune activity are both associated with various clinical disorders. The association between C-Reactive protein (CRP), a marker associated with inflammation, and cognitive performance remains unclear. Further, mechanisms potentially linking CRP to cognition are not yet established. Brain structure may well mediate this relationship: immune processes play crucial roles in shaping and maintaining brain structure, with brain structure and function driving cognition. The United Kingdom Biobank (UKBB) is a large cohort study with extensive assessments, including high-sensitivity serum CRP levels, brain imaging, and various cognitive tasks. With data from 39,200 UKBB participants, we aimed first to determine the relationship between CRP and cognitive performance, and second, to assess metrics of brain morphology as potential mediators in this relationship. Participants were aged 40 to 70 at initial assessment and were mostly Caucasian. After accounting for potential covariates (e.g., age, sex, medical diagnoses, use of selective-serotonin reuptake inhibitors), we found CRP levels to have small, negative associations with fluid intelligence (b = -0.03, 95%CI[-0.05,-0.02], t(14381) = -3.62, pcor = .004), and numeric memory (b = -0.03, 95%CI[-0.05,-0.01], t(14366) = -3.31, pcor = .007). We found no evidence of brain morphology mediating these relationships (all |ab| < 0.001, all pcor > .55). Our findings from this large sample suggest that serum-assessed CRP is of marginal importance for cognitive performance in mid-to-late aged Caucasians; the small effect sizes of statistically significant associations provide context to previous inconsistent results. The seeming lack of involvement of brain morphology suggests that other brain metrics (e.g., connectivity, functional activation) may be more pertinent to this relationship. Future work should also consider CRP levels measured in the central nervous system and/or other cytokines that may better predict cognitive performance in this population.

Project description:ImportanceThe associations between muscle strength and cognitive outcomes have sparked interest in interventions that increase muscle strength for prevention of dementia, but the associations between muscle strength and cognitive aging are unclear, particularly among middle-aged adults.ObjectiveTo evaluate the association between handgrip strength (HGS) and dementia, reduced cognition, and poorer neuroimaging outcomes in a UK population of middle-aged adults.Design, setting, and participantsThis cohort study evaluated UK Biobank participants aged 39 to 73 years enrolled from 2006 to 2010 with measured HGS and prospectively followed up for dementia diagnosis. Data were analyzed from October 2021 to April 2022.ExposuresHGS assessed in both hands via dynamometer.Main outcomes and measuresOutcomes included cognitive test scores (fluid intelligence and prospective memory), brain magnetic resonance imaging measures (total brain volume, white matter hyperintensity, and hippocampal volume), and incident dementia (all-cause, vascular, and Alzheimer disease [AD] from primary care, hospital, or death records) over a median (IQR) of 11.7 (11.0-12.4) years of follow-up. Mixed-effects linear and logistic regressions and Cox proportional-hazard models were used to estimate associations, stratified by gender and adjusted for covariates. Estimates are presented per 5-kg decrement in HGS. To evaluate reverse causation, we assessed whether a polygenic risk score for AD is associated with HGS.ResultsA subsample of 190 406 adult participants in the UK Biobank (mean [SD] age, 56.5 [8.1] years; 102 735 women [54%]) were evaluated. A 5-kg decrement in HGS was associated with lower fluid intelligence scores in men (β, -0.007; 95% CI, -0.010 to -0.003) and women (β, -0.04; 95% CI, -0.05 to -0.04. A 5-kg decrement in HGS was associated with worse odds of correctly responding to a prospective memory task for men (odds ratio, 0.91; 95% CI, 0.90 to 0.92) and women (odds ratio, 0.88; 95% CI, 0.87 to 0.90). A 5-kg decrement in HGS was associated with greater white matter hyperintensity volume in men (β, 92.22; 95% CI, 31.09 to 153.35) and women (β, 83.56; 95% CI, 13.54 to 153.58). A 5-kg decrement in HGS was associated with incident dementia for men (hazard ratio, 1.20; 95% CI, 1.12 to 1.28) and women (hazard ratio, 1.12; 95% CI, 1.00 to 1.26). The AD genetic risk score was not significantly associated with HGS.Conclusions and relevanceThese findings suggest that HGS is associated with measures of neurocognitive brain health among men and women and they add to a growing body of research indicating that interventions designed to increase muscle strength, particularly among middle-aged adults, may hold promise for the maintenance of neurocognitive brain health.

Dataset Information

Education is power: preserving cognition in the UK biobank.

Introduction

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Publications

Education is power: preserving cognition in the UK biobank.

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