TY - JOUR

T1 - Higher diurnal salivary cortisol levels are related to smaller prefrontal cortex surface area in elderly men and women

AU - Stomby, Andreas

AU - Boraxbekk, Carl Johan

AU - Lundquist, Anders

AU - Nordin, Annelie

AU - Nilsson, Lars Göran

AU - Adolfsson, Rolf

AU - Nyberg, Lars

AU - Olsson, Tommy

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2016 European Society of Endocrinology Published by Bioscientifica Ltd.

PY - 2016/8

Y1 - 2016/8

N2 - Objective: Elevated cortisol levels with aging have been associated with atrophy of the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex (PFC), as well as with impaired cognitive functions in men. However, coexisting diseases have confounded many studies examining these relationships. Studies in women are lacking. Our objective was to test whether salivary cortisol levels were related to morphology of the hippocampus and the PFC, and to cognitive performance. Design: A cross-sectional study including 200 elderly (55-80 years old) men and women. Method: We used magnetic resonance imaging, tests of episodic-, semantic-, and working memory, visuospatial ability, and cortisol levels in four saliva samples collected during 1 day. Results: Area under the curve (AUC) for cortisol levels was negatively related to cortical surface area of the left anterior cingulate gyrus (caudal P < 0.001; rostral P = 0.006), right lateral orbitofrontal cortex (P = 0.004), and right rostral middle frontal gyrus (P = 0.003). In women, there was also a negative relationship with cortical surface area in the left rostral middle frontal gyrus (P = 0.006). No relationship was found between cortisol levels and hippocampal volume. Conclusion: This study suggests that the structure of the medial PFC is related to cortisol levels in both elderly women and men.

AB - Objective: Elevated cortisol levels with aging have been associated with atrophy of the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex (PFC), as well as with impaired cognitive functions in men. However, coexisting diseases have confounded many studies examining these relationships. Studies in women are lacking. Our objective was to test whether salivary cortisol levels were related to morphology of the hippocampus and the PFC, and to cognitive performance. Design: A cross-sectional study including 200 elderly (55-80 years old) men and women. Method: We used magnetic resonance imaging, tests of episodic-, semantic-, and working memory, visuospatial ability, and cortisol levels in four saliva samples collected during 1 day. Results: Area under the curve (AUC) for cortisol levels was negatively related to cortical surface area of the left anterior cingulate gyrus (caudal P < 0.001; rostral P = 0.006), right lateral orbitofrontal cortex (P = 0.004), and right rostral middle frontal gyrus (P = 0.003). In women, there was also a negative relationship with cortical surface area in the left rostral middle frontal gyrus (P = 0.006). No relationship was found between cortisol levels and hippocampal volume. Conclusion: This study suggests that the structure of the medial PFC is related to cortisol levels in both elderly women and men.

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84979944435&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1530/EJE-16-0352

DO - 10.1530/EJE-16-0352

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 27190207

AN - SCOPUS:84979944435

VL - 175

SP - 117

EP - 126

JO - European Journal of Endocrinology

JF - European Journal of Endocrinology

SN - 0804-4643

IS - 2

ER -