High resolution diffusion tensor imaging of the human cortex reveals non-linear trajectories over the healthy lifespan.

ABSTRACT: The human cortex undergoes significant macrostructural and microstructural changes across the lifespan, which can be assessed using high-resolution diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). In healthy individuals, diffusion is typically greater perpendicular to the cortical surface, aligning with neuronal bodies and apical dendrites. This study examined DTI metrics in 190 healthy individuals (ages 5-74 years) to characterize normative cortical changes across neurodevelopment and aging. Whole-brain DTI data were acquired with 1.5 mm isotropic resolution and a b-value of 1000 s/mm² acquired in only 3:36 minutes at 3T. Cortical segmentation was performed exclusively on diffusion images to yield thickness, radiality, fractional anisotropy (FA), mean (MD), axial (AD), and radial diffusivity (RD) in total

SUBMITTER: Acosta-Franco JA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12368611 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature