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Hippocampal and Amygdala Gray Matter Loss in Elderly Controls with Subtle Cognitive Decline
Zanchi D, Giannakopoulos P, Borgwardt S, Rodriguez C, Haller S.. Frontiers in aging neuroscience, 2017-03-07
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
In contrast to the idea that hippocampal and amygdala volume loss occur in late phases of neurodegeneration, recent contributions point to the relevance of preexisting structural deficits that are associated with aging and are independent of amyloid deposition in preclinical Alzheimer disease cases. The present work explores GM hippocampal and amygdala volumes in elderly controls displaying the first signs of cognitive decline. 455 subjects (263 females), including 374 controls (228 females) and 81 middle cognitive impairment subjects (35 females), underwent two neuropsychological evaluations (baseline and 18 months follow-up) and a MRI-T1 examination (only baseline). Clinical assessment included Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Clinical Dementia Rating scale, Hospitalized Anxiety and Depression scale, the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease neuropsychological battery and RI-48 Cued Recall Test (RI-48) for episodic memory. Based on their cognitive performance, we defined the controls as stable controls (sCON) and deteriorating controls (dCONs). Analyses included volumetric assessment, shape analyses and linear regressions between GM volume loss and differences in clinical scores between baseline and follow-up. Significant GM volume decrease in hippocampus bilaterally and right amygdala was found in dCON compared to sCON ( p p < 0.05). Shape analyses revealed that atrophy was more pronounced at the superior- posterior lateral side of the hippocampus and amygdala. Significant correlations were found between GM volume of left hippocampus and the delta of MMSE and RI-48 scores in dCON and MCI groups separately. Decreased hippocampal and right amygdala volumes precede the first signs of cognitive decline in healthy elderly controls at the pre-MCI state. Left hippocampus volume may also predict short-term changes of overall cognition in these vulnerable cases.
Key findings
- In contrast to the idea that hippocampal and amygdala volume loss occur in late phases of neurodegeneration, recent contributions point to the relevance of preexisting structural deficits that are associated with aging and are independent of amyloid deposition in preclinical Alzheimer disease cases.
- Significant GM volume decrease in hippocampus bilaterally and right amygdala was found in dCON compared to sCON ( p p < 0.05).
- Shape analyses revealed that atrophy was more pronounced at the superior- posterior lateral side of the hippocampus and amygdala.
- Significant correlations were found between GM volume of left hippocampus and the delta of MMSE and RI-48 scores in dCON and MCI groups separately.
- Left hippocampus volume may also predict short-term changes of overall cognition in these vulnerable cases.
Why it matters
Among 455 elderly subjects, those whose cognition deteriorated over 18 months had significantly greater gray matter loss in the hippocampus on both sides and the right amygdala than those who stayed stable. This links early cognitive decline to structural brain loss, but it is an observational imaging finding and does not by itself provide a treatment or prevention.
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Study details
- Participants455
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 50/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Frontiers in aging neuroscience) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience: journal h-index 174 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 2 / 5 | 2017 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 455 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 4 / 7 | Cited 93 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 8.5 citations a year over 11 year(s) since 2017 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 5.6× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 1 / 6 | Cited by 1 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 31 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Sven Haller: h-index 53 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | Uppsala University: institution h-index 1,114 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 7 institution(s) in 3 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 28326035) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 50 / 100 | — |
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Read the original
- DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2017.00050
- PubMed: 28326035
- Original source →
- Free full text: Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Zanchi, D., Giannakopoulos, P., Borgwardt, S., Rodriguez, C., & Haller, S. (2017). Hippocampal and Amygdala Gray Matter Loss in Elderly Controls with Subtle Cognitive Decline. Frontiers in aging neuroscience. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2017.00050
Vancouver
Zanchi D, Giannakopoulos P, Borgwardt S, Rodriguez C, Haller S. Hippocampal and Amygdala Gray Matter Loss in Elderly Controls with Subtle Cognitive Decline. Frontiers in aging neuroscience. 2017. doi:10.3389/fnagi.2017.00050. PMID: 28326035.
BibTeX
@article{zanchi2017-28326035,
author = {Zanchi, D. and Giannakopoulos, P. and Borgwardt, S. and Rodriguez, C. and Haller, S.},
title = {{Hippocampal and Amygdala Gray Matter Loss in Elderly Controls with Subtle Cognitive Decline}},
journal = {Frontiers in aging neuroscience},
year = {2017},
doi = {10.3389/fnagi.2017.00050},
pmid = {28326035},
url = {https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2017.00050}
}
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