Vitamin D, Folate, and Cobalamin Serum Concentrations Are Related to Brain Volume and White Matter Integrity in Urban Adults
Date
2020Journal
Frontiers in Aging NeurosciencePublisher
Frontiers Media S.A.Type
Article
Metadata
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Background and objectives: Lower vitamin status has been linked to cognitive deficits, pending mechanistic elucidation. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D], folate and cobalamin were explored against brain volumes and white matter integrity (WMI). Methods: Three prospective waves from Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity Across the Life Span (HANDLS) study were used [Baltimore, City, MD, 2004-2015, N = 183-240 urban adults (Agev1: 30-64 years)]. Serum vitamin 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D], folate and cobalamin concentrations were measured at visits 1 (v1: 2004-2009) and 2 (v2: 2009-2013), while structural and diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging (sMRI/dMRI) outcomes were measured at vscan: 2011-2015. Top 10 ranked adjusted associations were corrected for multiple testing using familywise Bonferroni (FWER <0.05) and false discovery rates (FDR, q-value < 0.10). Results: We found statistically significant (FWER < 0.05; β±SE) direct associations of 25(OH)D(v1) with WM volumes [overall: +910 ± 336/males: +2,054 ± 599], occipital WM; [overall: +140 ± 40, males: +261 ± 67 and Agev1 > 50 years: +205 ± 54]; parietal WM; [overall: +251 ± 77, males: +486 ± 129 and Agev1 > 50 years: +393 ± 108] and left occipital pole volume [overall: +15.70 ± 3.83 and above poverty: 19.0 ± 4.3], findings replicated for 25(OH)D (v2-v1) annualized exposure, which was also linked with greater WMI (fractional anisotropy, FA) in the anterior limb of the internal capsule (ALIC); FWER < 0.05 [Overall: +0.0020 ± 0.0004; Whites: +0.0024 ± 0.0004] and in the cingulum (hippocampus) [Overall: +0.0016 ± 0.0004]. Only trends were detected for cobalamin exposures (q < 0.10), while serum folate (v1) was associated with lower mean diffusivity (MD) in ALIC, reflecting greater WMI, overall. Conclusions: Among urban adults, serum 25(OH)D status and increase were consistently linked to larger occipital and parietal WM volumes and greater region-specific WMI. Pending longitudinal replication of our findings, randomized controlled trials of vitamin D supplementation should be conducted against brain marker outcomes. Copyright The Authors.Sponsors
This work was supported in part by the Intramural research Program of the NIH, National institute on Aging. This work was also supported by the National Institutes of Health, R01-AG034161 to SW, ZIA?AG000513 to ME and AZ, and The University of Maryland Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Center (NIH grant P30 AG028747).Keyword
25-hydroxyvitamin Dbrain volumes
cobalamin
cognitive aging
folate
health disparities
white matter integrity
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https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85086266287&doi=10.3389%2ffnagi.2020.00140&partnerID=40&md5=52852f7170bdbef3ef556297b0650c5d; http://hdl.handle.net/10713/13138ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.3389/fnagi.2020.00140