TY - JOUR
T1 - Structural inequality linked to brain volume and network dynamics in aging and dementia across the Americas
AU - Legaz, Agustina
AU - Altschuler, Florencia
AU - Gonzalez-Gomez, Raul
AU - Hernández, Hernán
AU - Baez, Sandra
AU - Migeot, Joaquín
AU - Fittipaldi, Sol
AU - Medel, Vicente
AU - Maito, Marcelo Adrián
AU - Godoy, María E.
AU - Moguilner, Sebastián
AU - Cruzat, Josephine
AU - Coronel-Oliveros, Carlos
AU - Tagliazuchi, Enzo
AU - Santamaria Garcia, Hernando
AU - Farina, Francesca R.
AU - Reyes, Pablo
AU - Javandel, Shireen
AU - García, Adolfo M.
AU - Deleglise, Álvaro
AU - Matallana, Diana L.
AU - Avila-Funes, José Alberto
AU - Slachevsky, Andrea
AU - Behrens, María I.
AU - Custodio, Nilton
AU - Trujillo-Llano, Catalina
AU - Cardona, Juan F.
AU - Barttfeld, Pablo
AU - Brusco, Ignacio L.
AU - Bruno, Martín A.
AU - Sosa Ortiz, Ana L.
AU - Pina-Escudero, Stefanie D.
AU - Takada, Leonel T.
AU - França Resende, Elisa de Paula
AU - Possin, Katherine L.
AU - Okada de Oliveira, Maira
AU - Hu, Kun
AU - Lopera, Francisco
AU - Lawlor, Brian
AU - Valcour, Victor
AU - Yokoyama, Jennifer S.
AU - Miller, Bruce
AU - Ibañez, Agustin
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature America, Inc. 2024.
PY - 2024
Y1 - 2024
N2 - Structural inequality, the uneven distribution of resources and opportunities, influences health outcomes. However, the biological embedding of structural inequality in aging and dementia, especially among underrepresented populations, is unclear. We examined the association between structural inequality (country-level and state-level Gini indices) and brain volume and connectivity in 2,135 healthy controls, and individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and frontotemporal lobe degeneration from Latin America and the United States. Greater structural inequality was linked to reduced brain volume and connectivity, with stronger effects in Latin America, especially in the temporo-cerebellar, fronto-thalamic and hippocampal regions. In the United States, milder effects were observed in the insular-cingular and temporal areas. Results were more pronounced in Alzheimer’s disease and were independent of age, sex, education, cognition and other confounding factors. The findings highlight the critical role of structural inequality in aging and dementia, emphasizing the biological embedding of macrosocial factors and the need for targeted interventions in underserved populations.
AB - Structural inequality, the uneven distribution of resources and opportunities, influences health outcomes. However, the biological embedding of structural inequality in aging and dementia, especially among underrepresented populations, is unclear. We examined the association between structural inequality (country-level and state-level Gini indices) and brain volume and connectivity in 2,135 healthy controls, and individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and frontotemporal lobe degeneration from Latin America and the United States. Greater structural inequality was linked to reduced brain volume and connectivity, with stronger effects in Latin America, especially in the temporo-cerebellar, fronto-thalamic and hippocampal regions. In the United States, milder effects were observed in the insular-cingular and temporal areas. Results were more pronounced in Alzheimer’s disease and were independent of age, sex, education, cognition and other confounding factors. The findings highlight the critical role of structural inequality in aging and dementia, emphasizing the biological embedding of macrosocial factors and the need for targeted interventions in underserved populations.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85213534864&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1038/s43587-024-00781-2
DO - 10.1038/s43587-024-00781-2
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85213534864
SN - 2662-8465
JO - Nature Aging
JF - Nature Aging
M1 - e2306076120
ER -