Abstract P326: Vascular Risk Factors in Adulthood and Increased Diffusion Complexity of Neural Tissue Structure

Abstract

\n Introduction:\n We performed a region of interest diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and advanced diffusion complexity analysis of neural tissue to determine the impact of vascular health on novel diffusivity metrics in midlife adults.\n \n \n Methods:\n As shown in Table 1, 77 participants (26 black, 35 female) at year 30 visit in the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) longitudinal study were scanned with an advanced diffusion-weighted imaging and FLAIR protocol. Fractional anisotropy (FA) and non-linear diffusion complexity, C, measures were estimated. Cumulative vascular measures were tracked from baseline up to year 30 examination. Partial correlation analyses assessed the association between cumulative vascular measures and diffusion metrics in these participants.\n \n \n Results:\n As shown in Figure 1, higher systolic blood pressure exposure was associated with increased complexity, C, (red) and decreased FA (blue). Additionally, in the white matter of black participants, who exhibited a higher cumulative vascular risk exposure, FA was lower and complexity was higher in comparison to white matter in white participants.\n \n \n Conclusion:\n Higher burden of vascular risk factor exposure from adulthood to midlife is associated with changes in the diffusion properties of neural tissue in midlife. These diffusion measures may reflect novel markers of axonal disruption, increased inflammation, and/or increased glial proliferation. These new results suggest that microstructural changes in neural tissue are sensitive to vascular health during young adulthood and are possibly therapeutic targets in interventions focused on preserving neural tissue health across life.\n \n \n \n \n \n \n