Randomized trial on the effects of a combined physical/cognitive training in aged MCI subjects: the Train the Brain study

• Published in: Scientific reports Vol. 7; no. 1; p. 39471
• Main Authors: Maffei, L., Picano, E., Andreassi, M. G., Angelucci, A., Baldacci, F., Baroncelli, L., Begenisic, T., Bellinvia, P. F., Berardi, N., Biagi, L., Bonaccorsi, J., Bonanni, E., Bonuccelli, U., Borghini, A., Braschi, C., Broccardi, M., Bruno, R. M., Caleo, M., Carlesi, C., Carnicelli, L., Cartoni, G., Cecchetti, L., Cenni, M. C., Ceravolo, R., Chico, L., Cintoli, S., Cioni, G., Coscia, M., Costa, M., D’Angelo, G., D’Ascanio, P., Nes, M. De, Turco, S. Del, Coscio, E. Di, Galante, M. Di, Lascio, N. di, Faita, F., Falorni, I., Faraguna, U., Fenu, A., Fortunato, L., Franco, R., Gargani, L., Gargiulo, R., Ghiadoni, L., Giorgi, F. S., Iannarella, R., Iofrida, C., Kusmic, C., Limongi, F., Maestri, M., Maffei, M., Maggi, S., Mainardi, M., Mammana, L., Marabotti, A., Mariotti, V., Melissari, E., Mercuri, A., Micera, S., Molinaro, S., Narducci, R., Navarra, T., Noale, M., Pagni, C., Palumbo, S., Pasquariello, R., Pellegrini, S., Pietrini, P., Pizzorusso, T., Poli, A., Pratali, L., Retico, A., Ricciardi, E., Rota, G., Sale, A., Sbrana, S., Scabia, G., Scali, M., Scelfo, D., Sicari, R., Siciliano, G., Stea, F., Taddei, S., Tognoni, G., Tonacci, A., Tosetti, M., Turchi, S., Volpi, L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 03.01.2017; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 59/36; 59/57; 692/617/375; 692/617/375/132; Age; Blood flow; Brain mapping; Cerebral blood flow; Cognitive ability; Dementia; Dementia disorders; Functional magnetic resonance imaging; Humanities and Social Sciences; multidisciplinary; Neuroimaging; NMR; Nuclear magnetic resonance; Oxygenation; Parahippocampal gyrus; Physical training; Science; Spin labeling; Substantia grisea; Training
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/srep39471

Age-related cognitive impairment and dementia are an increasing societal burden. Epidemiological studies indicate that lifestyle factors, e.g. physical, cognitive and social activities, correlate with reduced dementia risk; moreover, positive effects on cognition of physical/cognitive training have been found in cognitively unimpaired elders. Less is known about effectiveness and action mechanisms of physical/cognitive training in elders already suffering from Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), a population at high risk for dementia. We assessed in 113 MCI subjects aged 65–89 years, the efficacy of combined physical-cognitive training on cognitive decline, Gray Matter (GM) volume loss and Cerebral Blood Flow (CBF) in hippocampus and parahippocampal areas, and on brain-blood-oxygenation-level-dependent (BOLD) activity elicited by a cognitive task, measured by ADAS-Cog scale, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Arterial Spin Labeling (ASL) and fMRI, respectively, before and after 7 months of training vs. usual life. Cognitive status significantly decreased in MCI-no training and significantly increased in MCI-training subjects; training increased parahippocampal CBF, but no effect on GM volume loss was evident; BOLD activity increase, indicative of neural efficiency decline, was found only in MCI-no training subjects. These results show that a non pharmacological, multicomponent intervention improves cognitive status and indicators of brain health in MCI subjects.