Aging
Conditions
Keywords
cognitive aging, episodic memory, fMRI, generalization, hippocampus, prefrontal cortex
Brief summary
The goal of this clinical is to learn how the brain supports different kinds of memory decisions in healthy young and older adults. The main question it seeks to answer is: Do older adults make memory decisions by integrating across experiences? Young (aged 18-30 years) and older (aged 65-80 years) participants will complete a memory task while undergoing functional MRI to measure their brain responses. Researchers will compare brain measures of integration in older adults to those of young adults to see if integration increases in older age.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALMemory decision type
Subjects will be probed to either remember an association they saw directly during the study phase or to make an inference across indirectly associated items.
Sponsors
Caitlin Bowman
National Institute on Aging (NIA)
Study design
Allocation
NA
Intervention model
SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Masking
NONE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 80 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Either aged 18-30 years (young adults) or aged 65-80 years (older adults) (self-report) * Fluent in English (self-report) * Right-handed (self-report) * Cognitively healthy (self report verified by score \> 24 on Montreal Cognitive Assessment) * Self-reported normal or corrected-to-normal vision
Exclusion criteria
* Self-reported neurological disorder (e.g., Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease) * Self-reported uncontrolled hypertension, diabetes, or thyroid disorder * Having conditions or devices that are unsafe for MRI (assessed via imaging center's MRI safety screening form) * Self-reported difficulty lying still on one's back for 1-2 hours
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Behavioral memory responses | Session 2 (experimental session) | Participants will complete the study and test phases of a memory-based inference task designed by the investigators. The investigators will focus on the accuracy of decisions (0-100% scale with higher scores meaning better memory) and how long it takes to make correct decisions (in seconds, faster responses mean less cognitive processing needed). |
| Neural memory responses | Session 2 (experimental session) | Investigators will measure the neural underpinnings of direct memory and the ability to make inferences. |
Countries
United States
Contacts
CONTACTCaitlin Bowman, PhD
Outcome results
None listed