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Research article
Jantje Goerdten
The University of Edinburgh
Corresponding Author
ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7814-1802
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Background: Aging is associated with an increasing risk of decline in cognitive abilities. The decline is, however, not a homogeneous process. There are substantial differences across individuals although previous investigations have identified individuals with distinct cognitive trajectories. Evidence is accumulating that lifestyle contributes significantly to the classification of individuals into various clusters. How and whether genetically related individuals, like twins, change in a more similar manner is yet not fully understood.
Methods: In this study, we fitted growth mixture models to Mini Mental State Exam scores (MMSE) from participants of the Swedish OCTO Twin study of oldest old monozygotic (MZ) and same-sex dizygotic (DZ) twins with the purpose of investigating whether twin pairs can be assigned to the same class of cognitive change.
Results: We identified 4 distinct groups (latent classes) whose MMSE trajectories followed various patterns of change over time: a class of stable and high performing individuals, two groups of high performers who declined at different annual rates, and a small group of impaired individuals who declined more rapidly. Notably, our analyses show that few individuals in fact could be assigned to the same class as their co-twin.
Conclusions: Our study provides evidence for more substantial impact of environmental, rather than genetic, influences on cognitive change trajectories in later life.
Keywords
Twins, Growth Mixture Models, Cognitive trajectories
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A new preprint design is coming!
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This is a preprint, a preliminary version of a manuscript that has not completed peer review at a journal. Research Square does not conduct peer review prior to posting preprints. The posting of a preprint on this server should not be interpreted as an endorsement of its validity or suitability for dissemination as established information or for guiding clinical practice.
Research article
Jantje Goerdten
The University of Edinburgh
Corresponding Author
ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7814-1802
Badges
Prescreen
This manuscript passed our Prescreen assessment
Complete author information
Appropriate declaration statements
Potential risks to human health
Prescreen
History
CURRENT STATUS: Posted
View the published article at Age and Ageing.
Version 1
Posted 04 Feb, 2020
No community comments so far
Metrics
Comments: 0
PDF Downloads: ...
HTML Views: ...
Subject Areas
Geriatrics & Gerontology
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
View the published article at Age and Ageing.
Background: Aging is associated with an increasing risk of decline in cognitive abilities. The decline is, however, not a homogeneous process. There are substantial differences across individuals although previous investigations have identified individuals with distinct cognitive trajectories. Evidence is accumulating that lifestyle contributes significantly to the classification of individuals into various clusters. How and whether genetically related individuals, like twins, change in a more similar manner is yet not fully understood.
Methods: In this study, we fitted growth mixture models to Mini Mental State Exam scores (MMSE) from participants of the Swedish OCTO Twin study of oldest old monozygotic (MZ) and same-sex dizygotic (DZ) twins with the purpose of investigating whether twin pairs can be assigned to the same class of cognitive change.
Results: We identified 4 distinct groups (latent classes) whose MMSE trajectories followed various patterns of change over time: a class of stable and high performing individuals, two groups of high performers who declined at different annual rates, and a small group of impaired individuals who declined more rapidly. Notably, our analyses show that few individuals in fact could be assigned to the same class as their co-twin.
Conclusions: Our study provides evidence for more substantial impact of environmental, rather than genetic, influences on cognitive change trajectories in later life.
Figure 1
Figure 2
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