TY - JOUR
T1 - Age-related neural changes underlying long-term recognition of musical sequences
AU - Bonetti, Leonardo
AU - Fernández-Rubio, Gemma
AU - Lumaca, Massimo
AU - Carlomagno, Francesco
AU - Risgaard Olsen, Emma
AU - Criscuolo, Antonio
AU - Kotz, Sonja A
AU - Vuust, Peter
AU - Brattico, Elvira
AU - Kringelbach, Morten L
N1 - © 2024. The Author(s).
PY - 2024/8
Y1 - 2024/8
N2 - Aging is often associated with decline in brain processing power and neural predictive capabilities. To challenge this notion, we used magnetoencephalography (MEG) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to record the whole-brain activity of 39 older adults (over 60 years old) and 37 young adults (aged 18-25 years) during recognition of previously memorised and varied musical sequences. Results reveal that when recognising memorised sequences, the brain of older compared to young adults reshapes its functional organisation. In fact, it shows increased early activity in sensory regions such as the left auditory cortex (100 ms and 250 ms after each note), and only moderate decreased activity (350 ms) in medial temporal lobe and prefrontal regions. When processing the varied sequences, older adults show a marked reduction of the fast-scale functionality (250 ms after each note) of higher-order brain regions including hippocampus, ventromedial prefrontal and inferior temporal cortices, while no differences are observed in the auditory cortex. Accordingly, young outperform older adults in the recognition of novel sequences, while no behavioural differences are observed with regards to memorised ones. Our findings show age-related neural changes in predictive and memory processes, integrating existing theories on compensatory neural mechanisms in non-pathological aging.
AB - Aging is often associated with decline in brain processing power and neural predictive capabilities. To challenge this notion, we used magnetoencephalography (MEG) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to record the whole-brain activity of 39 older adults (over 60 years old) and 37 young adults (aged 18-25 years) during recognition of previously memorised and varied musical sequences. Results reveal that when recognising memorised sequences, the brain of older compared to young adults reshapes its functional organisation. In fact, it shows increased early activity in sensory regions such as the left auditory cortex (100 ms and 250 ms after each note), and only moderate decreased activity (350 ms) in medial temporal lobe and prefrontal regions. When processing the varied sequences, older adults show a marked reduction of the fast-scale functionality (250 ms after each note) of higher-order brain regions including hippocampus, ventromedial prefrontal and inferior temporal cortices, while no differences are observed in the auditory cortex. Accordingly, young outperform older adults in the recognition of novel sequences, while no behavioural differences are observed with regards to memorised ones. Our findings show age-related neural changes in predictive and memory processes, integrating existing theories on compensatory neural mechanisms in non-pathological aging.
KW - Humans
KW - Music
KW - Adult
KW - Male
KW - Female
KW - Young Adult
KW - Middle Aged
KW - Aging/physiology
KW - Aged
KW - Magnetic Resonance Imaging
KW - Magnetoencephalography
KW - Adolescent
KW - Auditory Perception/physiology
KW - Brain/physiology
KW - Auditory Cortex/physiology
KW - Recognition, Psychology/physiology
KW - Brain Mapping/methods
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85202896237&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1038/s42003-024-06587-7
DO - 10.1038/s42003-024-06587-7
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 39209979
SN - 2399-3642
VL - 7
JO - Communications Biology
JF - Communications Biology
IS - 1
M1 - 1036
ER -