Investigation uncovers memory origins in exceptional elders, dubbed "superagers"
In a groundbreaking study published in the prestigious journal Cerebral Cortex, researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have shed light on the memory performance of a remarkable group of older individuals, known as 'superagers.' These individuals possess memory and cognitive functions that are similar to those of a 25-year-old.
The study, led by Dr. Alexandra Touroutoglou, PhD, the director of Imaging Operations at MGH's Frontotemporal Disorders Unit and an assistant professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School (HMS), compared the memory performance of 40 adults with a mean age of 67 to 41 young adults with a mean age of 25. The research was funded majorly by the National Institute on Aging.
During the study, participants were given a challenging memory test while their brains were imaged using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). The results revealed that in the visual cortex, superagers maintain the same high level of neural differentiation, or selectivity, as a young adult. This high neural differentiation allows superagers to create distinct representations of visual information for accurate memory.
The visual cortex, which processes what you see, plays a significant role in superagers' superior memory. Dr. Emily Rogalski, the clinic director involved in the study and a teacher at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine, plans to study different brain regions to further understand how superagers learn and remember. The team will also examine lifestyle and other factors that might contribute to superagers' amazing memory.
In an exciting development, the researchers are conducting a clinical trial to evaluate whether noninvasive electromagnetic stimulation can improve memory in older adults. This could potentially lead to new treatments for age-related memory decline.
Mass General Research Institute, where the study was conducted, is the original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School, founded in 1811. It conducts the largest hospital-based research program in the nation, with annual research operations of over $1 billion. In August 2020, Mass General was ranked #6 in the U.S. News & World Report list of 'America's Best Hospitals.'
For more details about the study, you can refer to the DOI 10.1093/cercor/bhab157. The study's senior author, Dr. Touroutoglou, was joined by Dr. Joseph Andreano, PhD, an investigator in the Department of Psychiatry at MGH and an instructor of Psychiatry at HMS, and Dr. Dickerson, a professor of Neurology at HMS.
This research provides valuable insights into the exceptional memory abilities of superagers and opens up new avenues for understanding and potentially improving memory in older adults.
