Affiliations: [a] State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, P. R. China | [b] Institute of Basic Research in Clinical Medicine, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, P.R. China | [c] School of Economics and Resource Management, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, P. R. China | [d] BABRI Centre, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, P. R. China
Correspondence:
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Correspondence to: Zhanjun Zhang, MD, State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning& IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, P. R. China. Tel./Fax: +86 10 58802005; E-mail: zhang_rzs@bnu.edu.cn.
Correspondence:
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Correspondence to: Nuo Wang, PhD, School of Economics and Resource Management, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, P. R. China. Tel./Fax: +86 10 58802286; E-mail: wangnuo@bnu.edu.cn.
Note: [1] These authors contributed equally to this work.
Abstract: Epidemiological and clinical studies suggest that high serum cholesterol is a risk factor of dementia. However, the effects of cholesterol on cognition and brain remain largely unclear. This study aims to investigate the associations between serum total cholesterol (TC) and neuropsychological performance, and intrinsic functional networks in non-demented elderly. Among a cohort of 120 community-dwelling Beijing residents, 29 subjects in the high-TC group (1st quartile) and 31 in the low-TC group (4th quartile) were included in this study, and underwent a battery of neuropsychological tests and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, including T2- and T1-weighted imaging, and resting-state functional MRI. No significant group difference was found in any of the neuropsychological tests used. Stronger connectivity in the default mode network was observed in the high-TC group compared to that in the low-TC group (p < 0.001, uncorrected). While in the salience network (SN), the high-TC group showed lower connectivity in the anterior cingulate cortex and frontal regions, compared to the low-TC group (p < 0.05, FWE corrected). Our findings suggest that in non-demented elderly persons, high serum cholesterol is associated with disruption of functional connectivity in the SN. The results not only deepen our understanding of how cholesterol affects the brain, but are also significant for selecting sensitive indicators for monitoring the impairments of cholesterol on the neural system.
