Evidence of regional associations between age-related inter-individual differences in resting-state functional connectivity and cortical thinning revealed through a multi-level analysis

Normal aging incurs functional and anatomical alterations in the brain. Cortical thinning, age-related alterations in resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) and reductions in fractional amplitude of low frequency fluctuations (fALFF) are key components of brain aging that can be studied by neuroimaging. However, the level of association between these processes has not been fully established. We performed an analysis a multiple-levels, i.e. region or connection and modality, to investigate whether the evidence for the effect of aging on fALFF, RSFC and cortical thickness are associated in a large cohort. Our results show that there is a positive association between the level of evidence of age-related effects in all three in the brain. We also demonstrate that on a regional basis the association between RSFC alterations and cortical atrophy may be either positive or negative, which may relate to compensatory mechanisms predicted by the Scaffolding Theory of Aging and Cognition (STAC).