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Peer-reviewedCC BYCerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)

Dissociable contributions of cortical thickness and surface area to cognitive aging: evidence from multiple longitudinal cohorts.

  • Ina Demetriou1
  • Marta Correia1
  • Didac Vidal-Piñeiro2
  • Simon E Fisher3,4
  • Else Eising3
  • Valentina Escott-Price5,6
  • Matthew Bracher-Smith5,6
  • Dace Apšvalka1
  • Adam Attaheri1
  • Tina Emery1
  • Richard N Henson1,7
7 affiliations
  1. 1Medical Research Council Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge, 15 Chaucer Rd, Cambridge CB2 7EF, United Kingdom.
  2. 2Center for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition, Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Forskningsveien 3A, Oslo 0373, Norway.
  3. 3Language & Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Wundtlaan 1, Nijmegen 6525 XD, the Netherlands.
  4. 4Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Radboud University, Kapittelweg 29, Nijmegen 6525 EN, the Netherlands.
  5. 5Division of Psychological Medicine & Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University, 70 Park Pl, Cardiff CF10 3AT, United Kingdom.
  6. 6Dementia Research Institute, Cardiff University, Hadyn Ellis Building, Maindy Road, Cardiff CF24 4HQ, United Kingdom.
  7. 7Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Forvie Site, Robinson Way, Cambridge CB2 0SZ, United Kingdom.
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Abstract

Cortical volume, a widely-used marker of brain aging, is the product of two genetically and developmentally dissociable morphometric features: thickness and area. However, it remains unclear whether these two features have dissociable consequences for cognitive aging. To address this, we analyze cross-sectional and longitudinal neuroimaging and cognitive data from one discovery cohort (Cam-CAN) and two independent, pre-registered replication cohorts (OASIS-3 and HABS-HD), leveraging wide age ranges across adulthood, different follow-up intervals and diverse population backgrounds. We show that thickness declines more steeply with age than does area, and shows stronger associations with longitudinal change in fluid cognitive abilities, fairly uniformly across the cortex. Cognitive change is also dependent on baseline thickness, independent of thickness change and independent of baseline cognitive ability. In contrast, area is comparatively stable across adulthood, at least until old age, and shows weaker and more heterogeneous associations with cognitive change. Together, these findings help to reconcile inconsistencies in the literature, and indicate that thickness provides a more sensitive marker of dynamic neurobiological processes underlying cognitive aging, whereas area seems to reflect primarily stable, trait-like variation in cognitive ability.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{demetriou2026dissociable,
  title = {{Dissociable contributions of cortical thickness and surface area to cognitive aging: evidence from multiple longitudinal cohorts.}},
  author = {Ina Demetriou and Marta Correia and Didac Vidal-Piñeiro and Simon E Fisher and Else Eising and Valentina Escott-Price and Matthew Bracher-Smith and Dace Apšvalka and Adam Attaheri and Tina Emery and Richard N Henson},
  journal = {Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1093/cercor/bhag181},
  url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42932816},
  note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Dissociable contributions of cortical thickness and surface area to cognitive aging: evidence from multiple longitudinal cohorts.
AU  - Ina Demetriou
AU  - Marta Correia
AU  - Didac Vidal-Piñeiro
AU  - Simon E Fisher
AU  - Else Eising
AU  - Valentina Escott-Price
AU  - Matthew Bracher-Smith
AU  - Dace Apšvalka
AU  - Adam Attaheri
AU  - Tina Emery
AU  - Richard N Henson
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/01
JO  - Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)
DO  - 10.1093/cercor/bhag181
UR  - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42932816
AB  - Cortical volume, a widely-used marker of brain aging, is the product of two genetically and developmentally dissociable morphometric features: thickness and area. However, it remains unclear whether these two features have dissociable consequences for cognitive aging. To address this, we analyze cross-sectional and longitudinal neuroimaging and cognitive data from one discovery cohort (Cam-CAN) and two independent, pre-registered replication cohorts (OASIS-3 and HABS-HD), leveraging wide age ranges across adulthood, different follow-up intervals and diverse population backgrounds. We show that thickness declines more steeply with age than does area, and shows stronger associations with longitudinal change in fluid cognitive abilities, fairly uniformly across the cortex. Cognitive change is also dependent on baseline thickness, independent of thickness change and independent of baseline cognitive ability. In contrast, area is comparatively stable across adulthood, at least until old age, and shows weaker and more heterogeneous associations with cognitive change. Together, these findings help to reconcile inconsistencies in the literature, and indicate that thickness provides a more sensitive marker of dynamic neurobiological processes underlying cognitive aging, whereas area seems to reflect primarily stable, trait-like variation in cognitive ability.
SN  - 1047-3211
SN  - 1460-2199
ER  -