ArticleBehavioural brain research2012
Aerobic fitness relates to learning on a virtual Morris Water Task and hippocampal volume in adolescents.
Article in Behavioural brain research, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 68 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
68 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 122 citations in OpenAlex.
- The effect of exercise on cognitive function in people with multiple sclerosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Journal of neurology · 2023Pooled it
- Hippocampal subfield plasticity is associated with improved spatial memory.Communications biology · 2024Trial
- Effect of high-intensity interval training on hippocampal metabolism in older adolescents.Psychophysiology · 2022Trial
- Physical Exercise and Spatial Training: A Longitudinal Study of Effects on Cognition, Growth Factors, and Hippocampal Plasticity.Scientific reports · 2018Trial
- Tracking the relationship between children's aerobic fitness and cognitive control.Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association · 2016Trial
- Physical Activity and Adolescent Brain Structure, Mental Health, and Academic Outcomes.JAMA network open · 2026Article
- Enhancing Human Cognitive Performance Through Physical Activity: Effect of Moderate-to-Vigorous Physical Activity on Executive Function in Chinese Adolescents.Journal of Intelligence · 2026Article
- Virtual Morris Water Task: Procedures and Protocols for the Assessment of Spatial Navigation and Memory.Current protocols · 2026Article
- Sleep, Physical Activity, and Executive Functions in Students: A Narrative Review.Clocks & sleep · 2025Review
- Neuromorphometric associations with mood, cognition, and self-reported exercise levels in epilepsy and healthy individuals.Epilepsy & behavior reports · 2024Article
- Association between exercise habits in adolescence and old age and the risk of mild cognitive impairment: the Bunkyo health study.Frontiers in aging neuroscience · 2024Article
- Exercise Reshapes the Brain: Molecular, Cellular, and Structural Changes Associated with Cognitive Improvements.Molecular neurobiology · 2023Review
- Hippocampal Resting State Functional Connectivity Associated with Physical Activity in Periadolescent Children.Brain sciences · 2023Article
- Youth Team Sports Participation Associates With Reduced Dimensional Psychopathology Through Interaction With Biological Risk Factors.Biological psychiatry global open science · 2023Article
- Exploring the Mediating Role of Executive Function in the Relationship between Aerobic Fitness and Academic Achievement in Adolescents.Brain sciences · 2023Article
- State of Knowledge on Molecular Adaptations to Exercise in Humans: Historical Perspectives and Future Directions.Comprehensive Physiology · 2022Article
- Changes in Hippocampus and Amygdala Volume with Hypoxic Stress Related to Cardiorespiratory Fitness under a High-Altitude Environment.Brain sciences · 2022Article
- Examining the Effect of Increased Aerobic Exercise in Moderately Fit Adults on Psychological State and Cognitive Function.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2022Article
- Physical Activity, Fitness, and Executive Functions in Youth: Effects, Moderators, and Mechanisms.Current topics in behavioral neurosciences · 2022Article
- Hippocampal Adaptations to Continuous Aerobic Training: A Functional and Ultrastructural Evaluation in a Young Murine Model.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2021Article
8 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
In rodents, exercise increases hippocampal neurogenesis and allows for better learning and memory performance on water maze tasks. While exercise has also been shown to be beneficial for the brain and behavior in humans, no study has examined how exercise impacts spatial learning using a directly translational water maze task, or if these relationships exist during adolescence--a developmental period which the animal literature has shown to be especially vulnerable to exercise effects. In this study, we investigated the influence of aerobic fitness on hippocampal size and subsequent learning and memory, including visuospatial memory using a human analogue of the Morris Water Task, in 34 adolescents. Results showed that higher aerobic fitness predicted better learning on the virtual Morris Water Task and larger hippocampal volumes. No relationship between virtual Morris Water Task memory recall and aerobic fitness was detected. Aerobic fitness, however, did not relate to global brain volume or verbal learning, which might suggest some specificity of the influence of aerobic fitness on the adolescent brain. This study provides a direct translational approach to the existing animal literature on exercise, as well as adds to the sparse research that exists on how aerobic exercise impacts the developing human brain and memory.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.