ArticlePloS one2018
Sedentary behavior associated with reduced medial temporal lobe thickness in middle-aged and older adults.
Article in PloS one, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 52 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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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
52 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 105 citations in OpenAlex.
- Acute effects of physical activity breaking up sedentary behavior on cognitive function, biological mechanisms, and practical recommendations: a systematic review.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Pooled it
- Sedentary behavior, cognition, and brain health in older adults: a systematic review.Frontiers in aging neuroscience · 2025Pooled it
- Total Sedentary Time and Cognitive Function in Middle-Aged and Older Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Sports medicine - open · 2022Pooled it
- Cross-sectional and longitudinal neural predictors of physical activity and sedentary behaviour from a 6-month randomized controlled trial.Scientific reports · 2024Trial
- Morning exercise mitigates the impact of prolonged sitting on cerebral blood flow in older adults.Journal of applied physiology (Bethesda, Md. : 1985) · 2019Trial
- Physical Activity Is Associated With Age-Related Differences in Hippocampal Macrostructure and Microstructure in Middle-Aged and Older Adults.Hippocampus · 2026Article
- Associations of distinct sedentary behaviors with cortical, subcortical, and white matter hyperintensity volumes: Evidence from the ARIC study.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2026Article
- Sedentary behavior and cognitive impairment risk in older Chinese adults: effect modification by physical activity.BMC geriatrics · 2026Article
- Causal relationships between somatic movement, brain structures, and mental well-being: A multi-stage Mendelian randomization study.Psychological medicine · 2026Article
- Association of occupational balance and physical activity on life adjustment strategies among middle-aged Thai adults: a hierarchical modeling.BMC psychology · 2026Article
- Effects of 5-Minute Light-Intensity Physical Activity Breaks (Sit-Cycling and Stand-Twisting) on Cognitive Function, Sleepiness, and Back Pain in Physically Inactive University Students: Protocol for a Mixed-Design Laboratory Study.JMIR research protocols · 2026Article
- The associations between sedentary behavior and cognition in a population cohort of older adults.Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD · 2026Article
- Characterizing Gray matter atrophy patterns associated with accelerometer-measured sedentary behavior: a population-based study.Brain imaging and behavior · 2025Article
- 24-hour activity cycle behaviors and gray matter volume in mild cognitive impairment.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2025Article
- How Do Occupational Sedentary Behavior and Occupational Cognitive Complexity Relate to Cognitive Function? A Cross-Sectional Study.Health science reports · 2025Article
- Physical activity changes during midlife link to brain integrity and amyloid burden.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2025Observational
- Increased sedentary behavior is associated with neurodegeneration and worse cognition in older adults over a 7-year period despite high levels of physical activity.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2025Article
- Age-dependent nonlinear relationship between hypertension and hippocampal volume in sedentary women with lower educational attainment.Journal of education and health promotion · 2025Article
- Focusing on Sedentary Behavior in Comprehensive Cardiac Rehabilitation.Circulation reports · 2024Article
- Genomic structural equation modeling reveals latent phenotypes in the human cortex with distinct genetic architecture.Translational psychiatry · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Atrophy of the medial temporal lobe (MTL) occurs with aging, resulting in impaired episodic memory. Aerobic fitness is positively correlated with total hippocampal volume, a heavily studied memory-critical region within the MTL. However, research on associations between sedentary behavior and MTL subregion integrity is limited. Here we explore associations between thickness of the MTL and its subregions (namely CA1, CA23DG, fusiform gyrus, subiculum, parahippocampal, perirhinal and entorhinal cortex,), physical activity, and sedentary behavior. We assessed 35 non-demented middle-aged and older adults (25 women, 10 men; 45-75 years) using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire for older adults, which quantifies physical activity levels in MET-equivalent units and asks about the average number of hours spent sitting per day. All participants had high resolution MRI scans performed on a Siemens Allegra 3T MRI scanner, which allows for detailed investigation of the MTL. Controlling for age, total MTL thickness correlated inversely with hours of sitting/day (r = -0.37, p = 0.03). In MTL subregion analysis, parahippocampal (r = -0.45, p = 0.007), entorhinal (r = -0.33, p = 0.05) cortical and subiculum (r = -0.36, p = .04) thicknesses correlated inversely with hours of sitting/day. No significant correlations were observed between physical activity levels and MTL thickness. Though preliminary, our results suggest that more sedentary non-demented individuals have less MTL thickness. Future studies should include longitudinal analyses and explore mechanisms, as well as the efficacy of decreasing sedentary behaviors to reverse this association.
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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.