Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38151868›Full record

ArticleThe journal of nutrition, health & aging2023

Dietary Tyrosine Intake (FFQ) Is Associated with Locus Coeruleus, Attention and Grey Matter Maintenance: An MRI Structural Study on 398 Healthy Individuals of the Berlin Aging Study-II.

E R G Plini, M C Melnychuk, A Harkin, M J Dahl, M McAuslan, S Kühn, R T Boyle, R Whelan, R Andrews, S Düzel and 6 more

Erratum issuedOpen access · greenAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in The journal of nutrition, health & aging, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
0.9field-weighted citation impact, top 26% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 5 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Greater physical fitness (Acta physiologica (Oxford, England) · 2024
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

16 authors at 5 institutions in 4 countries.

E R G PliniEmanuele RG Plini, Department of Psychology, Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, Lloyd Building, 42A Pearse St, 8PVX+GJ Dublin, Ireland, plinie@tcd.ie.
M C Melnychuk
A Harkin
M J Dahl
M McAuslan
S Kühn
R T Boyle
R Whelan
R Andrews
S Düzel
J Drewelies
G G Wagner
U Lindenberger
K Norman
I H Robertson
P M Dockree
Trinity College Dublin · IEMax Planck Institute for Human Development · DEUniversity of Southern California · USGerman Institute of Human Nutrition · DEMassachusetts General Hospital · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND

objectiveIt is documented that low protein and amino-acid dietary intake is related to poorer cognitive health and increased risk of dementia. Degradation of the neuromodulatory pathways, (comprising the cholinergic, dopaminergic, serotoninergic and noradrenergic systems) is observed in neurodegenerative diseases and impairs the proper biosynthesis of key neuromodulators from micro-nutrients and amino acids. How these micro-nutrients are linked to neuromodulatory pathways in healthy adults is less studied. The Locus Coeruleus-Noradrenergic System (LC-NA) is the earliest subcortical structure affected in Alzheimer's disease, showing marked neurodegeneration, but is also sensitive for age-related changes. The LC-NA system is critical for supporting attention and cognitive control, functions that are enhanced both by tyrosine administration and chronic tyrosine intake. The purpose of this study was to 1) investigate whether the dietary intake of tyrosine, the key precursor for noradrenaline (NA), is related to LC signal intensity 2) whether LC mediates the reported association between tyrosine intake and higher cognitive performance (measured with Trail Making Test - TMT), and 3) whether LC signal intensity relates to an objective measure of brain maintenance (BrainPAD).

methodsThe analyses included 398 3T MRIs of healthy participants from the Berlin Aging Study II to investigate the relationship between LC signal intensity and habitual dietary tyrosine intake-daily average (HD-Tyr-IDA - measured with Food Frequency Questionnaire - FFQ). As a control procedure, the same analyses were repeated on other main seeds of the neuromodulators' subcortical system (Dorsal and Medial Raphe, Ventral Tegmental Area and Nucleus Basalis of Meynert). In the same way, the relationships between the five nuclei and BrainPAD were tested.

resultsResults show that HD-Tyr-IDA is positively associated with LC signal intensity. Similarly, LC disproportionally relates to better brain maintenance (BrainPAD). Mediation analyses reveal that only LC, relative to the other nuclei tested, mediates the relationship between HD-Tyr-IDA I and performance in the TMT and between HD-Tyr-IDA and BrainPAD.

conclusionsThese findings provide the first evidence linking tyrosine intake with LC-NA system signal intensity and its correlation with neuropsychological performance. This study strengthens the role of diet for maintaining brain and cognitive health and supports the noradrenergic theory of cognitive reserve. Within this framework, adequate tyrosine intake might increase the resilience of LC-NA system functioning, by preventing degeneration and supporting noradrenergic metabolism required for LC function and neuropsychological performance.

Indexed as

Locus CoeruleusTyrosineAgingAttentionDietEatingGray MatterHumansMagnetic Resonance ImagingNeurotransmitter AgentsNorepinephrineNeurotransmitter AgentsNorepinephrineTyrosinegrey Matter maintenancehealthy aginghealthy nutritionLocus CoeruleusproteinTyrosine

Identifiers

PMID38151868
PMCPMC12880393
OpenAlexW4387768611

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.