Reduced functional segregation between the default mode network and the executive control network in healthy older adults: A longitudinal study
NeuroImage March 19, 2016 Kwun Kei Ng, June C. Lo, Joseph K.W. Lim et al. 237 citations
In healthy older adults, functional connectivity within brain networks (executive control and default mode networks) declines over four years, indicating a loss of functional specialization with aging. Between these networks, connectivity initially increases (greater segregation) but later decreases, following a u-shaped trajectory. The rate of this later loss in segregation is linked to a decline in processing speed. These brain connectivity changes are independent of gray matter volume loss. The findings connect age-related changes in brain network function to age-related cognitive decline.