Relation of brain function and structure

Aging is characterized by progressive changes in brain function and structure. The brain of healthy elderly people exhibits shrinkage of neurons, reductions of synaptic spines, and lower numbers of synapses, which lead to reductions in grey matter and concurrent reorganizations of functional connectivity in major brain networks. Age-related changes in brain structure and function are associated with clinically relevant cognitive and behavioral impairments in healthy subjects. Using modern MRI techniques, such as DWI and multiband accelerated fMRI, and different methodologies for data analysis, including dynamic functional connectivity, independent component analysis (ICA), graph theory and machine learning, our group studies aging in the healthy brain or patients with psychiatric disorders.