Neurovascular coupling, cerebral white matter integrity, and response to cocoa in older people.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To investigate the relationship between neurovascular coupling and cognitive function in elderly individuals with vascular risk factors and to determine whether neurovascular coupling could be modified by cocoa consumption.

Methods

Sixty older people (aged 72.9 ± 5.4 years) were studied in a parallel-arm, double-blind clinical trial of neurovascular coupling and cognition in response to 24 hours and 30 days of cocoa consumption. Cognitive measures included Mini-Mental State Examination and Trail Making Test A and B. Neurovascular coupling was measured from the beat-to-beat blood flow velocity responses in the middle cerebral arteries to the N-Back Task. In a subset of MRI-eligible participants, cerebral white matter structural integrity was also measured.

Result

SUBMITTER: Sorond FA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3885215 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature