Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39916406›Full record

ArticleHuman brain mapping2025

Mechanical Properties of the Cortex in Older Adults and Relationships With Personality Traits.

Kyra E Twohy, Mary K Kramer, Alexa M Diano, Olivia M Bailey, Peyton L Delgorio, Grace McIlvain, Matthew D J McGarry, Christopher R Martens, Hillary Schwarb, Lucy V Hiscox and 1 more

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in Human brain mapping, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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.

  1. Article
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  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Kyra E TwohyDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-9979-6728
Mary K KramerDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA.
Alexa M DianoDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA.
Olivia M BaileyDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA.
Peyton L DelgorioDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA.
Grace McIlvainDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA.
Matthew D J McGarryThayer School of Engineering, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA.
Christopher R MartensDepartment of Kinesiology & Applied Physiology, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA.
Hillary SchwarbDepartment of Psychology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA.
Lucy V HiscoxCardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC), Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK.ORCID 0000-0001-6296-7442
Curtis L JohnsonDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-7760-131X

Funding

Mechanical integrity of memory systems in mild cognitive impairmentR01AG058853 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE · PI JOHNSON, CURTIS L · 2018 to 2022
$2.3M
NIA NIH HHS R01 AG058853NIH HHS R01-AG058853
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Aging and neurodegeneration impact structural brain integrity and can result in changes to behavior and cognition. Personality, a relatively stable trait in adults as compared to behavior, in part relies on normative individual differences in cellular organization of the cerebral cortex, but links between brain structure and personality expression have been mixed. One key finding is that personality has been shown to be a risk factor in the development of Alzheimer's disease, highlighting a structure-trait relationship. Magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) has been used to noninvasively study age-related changes in tissue mechanical properties because of its high sensitivity to both the microstructural health and the structure-function relationship of the tissue. Recent advancements in MRE methodology have allowed for reliable property recovery of cortical subregions, which had previously presented challenges due to the complex geometry and overall thin structure. This study aimed to quantify age-related changes in cortical mechanical properties and the relationship of these properties to measures of personality in an older adult population (N = 57; age 60-85 years) for the first time. Mechanical properties including shear stiffness and damping ratio were calculated for 30 bilateral regions of the cortex across all four lobes, and the NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI) was used to measure neuroticism and conscientiousness in all participants. Shear stiffness and damping ratio were found to vary widely across regions of the cortex, upward of 1 kPa in stiffness and by 0.3 in damping ratio. Shear stiffness changed regionally with age, with some regions experiencing accelerated degradation compared to neighboring regions. Greater neuroticism (i.e., the tendency to experience negative emotions and vulnerability to stress) was associated with high damping ratio, indicative of poorer tissue integrity, in the rostral middle frontal cortex and the precentral gyrus. This study provides evidence of structure-trait correlates between physical mechanical properties and measures of personality in older adults and adds to the supporting literature that neurotic traits may impact brain health in cognitively normal aging.

Indexed as

AgingCerebral CortexPersonalityAgedAged, 80 and overBiomechanical PhenomenaElasticity Imaging TechniquesFemaleHumansMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleMiddle AgedPersonality Inventoryagingdamping ratiomagnetic resonance elastographyneuroticismstiffness

Identifiers

PMID39916406
PMCPMC11803078

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Registered trials

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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.