An international research team led by Richard Bethlehem of the University of Cambridge and Jakob Seidlitz of the University of Pennsylvania has pooled a massive dataset — of nearly 125,000 brain scans from more than 100,000 people — to track the development of the brain from the womb into old age. to trace . This can help detect pathological changes at an early stage.
Parents are familiar with the regular checkups by pediatricians who record the height, weight and head circumference of their offspring. By comparing the data with peers, growth disorders can be identified. Growth charts have been a cornerstone of pediatrics for over 200 years. Until now, however, there are no analog brain reference tables.
Scientists have now taken a first step towards closing this gap. They collected what they believe to be the largest data set to date to uncover typical and atypical developments and aging processes in the brain. Nearly 125,000 brain scans of more than 100,000 people were involved in the work, the trade journal “Nature” reported on Wednesday. They range from 15 week old fetuses to centenarians.
For example, the data allowed the researchers to show that the volume of gray matter in the brain, which mainly contains nerve cells, increases rapidly in the unborn child from mid-gestation, reaching its peak just before age. of six. Then it slowly decreases.
Brain size decreases with age
White matter — to put it simply, the brain’s communication channel — also increases rapidly up to age 29. From the age of 50, the decline accelerates. The data also showed that brain size naturally declines with age, but at a much faster rate in Alzheimer’s patients.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
