Sex and age-related differences in cerebral blood flow investigated using pseudo-continuous arterial spin labeling magnetic resonance imaging
Joseph S. R. Alisch, Nikkita Khattar, Richard W. Kim, Luis E. Cortina, Abinand C. Rejimon, Wenshu Qian, Luigi Ferrucci, Susan M. Resnick, Richard G. Spencer, Mustapha Bouhrara
Abstract
= 80) of cognitively unimpaired individuals over a wide age range. In agreement with literature, we find that GM regions exhibited lower CBF with age. In contrast, WM regions exhibited higher CBF with age in various cerebral regions. We attribute this new finding to increased oligodendrocyte metabolism to maintain myelin homeostasis in the setting of increased myelin turnover with age. Further, consistent with prior studies, we found that CBF was higher in women than in men in all brain structures investigated. Our work provides new insights into the effects of age and sex on CBF. In addition, our results provide reference CBF values for the standard ASL protocol recommended by the ISMRM Perfusion Study Group and the European ASL in Dementia consortium. Thus, these results provide a foundation for further investigations of CNS perfusion in a variety of settings, including aging, cerebrovascular diseases, and dementias.