Youth-like brain activation linked with greater cognitive training gains in older adults: Insights from the ACTOP study

This study investigates the relationship between inter -individual neurofunctional differences in older adults and cognitive training efficacy, with a specific focus on the association between youth -like task -related brain activation and improvements in working memory (WM) training. The data is part of the Attentional Control Training for Older People (ACTOP) study, 30 older adults completed 12 half-hour WM training sessions. The WM performance slope, assessed at the conclusion of sessions 1 through 6 and sessions 7 to 12, determined early- and late -stage training gains, respectively. Transfer measures were taken before (PRE), midway (MID), and after (POST) training, and the differences in MID -PRE and POSTMID on transfer tasks were used to determine early- and late -stage transfer effects, respectively. The Goodness of Fit (GOF) metric was used to quantify the similarity between each older adult 's activation pattern, as measured with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), to that of a group of younger adults. GOF scores were calculated for activation during low -load (1-0back) and high -load (2-0back) N -back tasks. The results indicated that larger GOF scores in the low -load condition were associated with greater training gains in both the early and late learning stages, and that larger GOF scores in the high -load condition were associated with greater training gains during the late -stage. These findings suggest that a youth -like brain activation pattern in older adults is associated with greater cognitive training benefits, underscoring the role of inter -individual neurofunctional differences to account for variations in training outcomes among older adults.