Adult lifespan trajectories of neuromagnetic signals and interrelations with cortical thickness

Abstract

Oscillatory power and phase synchronization map neuronal dynamics and are commonly studied to describe the healthy or diseased human brain. Yet, little is known about the course of these features from early adulthood into old age. Leveraging magnetoencephalography (MEG) resting-state data in a cross-sectional adult sample (n = 350), we probed lifespan differences (18-88 years) in connectivity and power and interaction effects with sex. Building upon recent attempts to link brain structure and function, we tested the spatial correspondence of age effects on cortical thickness and those on functional networks and a direct relationship at the level of the study sample. We found MEG frequency-specific patterns for lower- and higher-order brain regions and divergence between sexes in low frequencies. Connectivity and power exhibited distinct linear trajectories with age or turning points at midlife, which in the delta and beta bands corresponded to the age patterns of cortical thickness. Structure-function coupling was frequency-dependent and observed in unimodal or transmodal regions. Altogether, we provide a comprehensive overview of the topographic functional profile of adulthood that can form a basis for neurocognitive and clinical investigations. This study further sheds new light on how the brain’s structural architecture relates to fast oscillatory activity.