Claudine Jolle Gauthier1,
Muriel Lefort2, Sad Mekary3, Laurence
Desjardins-Crpeau3, Ccile Madjar3, Louis Bherer4,
Frdrique Frouin2, Richard D. Hoge5
1Neurophysics,
Max Planck Institute for Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Saxony,
Germany; 2Inserm 678, UPMC, CHU Piti Salptrire, Paris,
Ile-de-France, France; 3CRIUGM, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; 4Concordia
University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; 5Physiology, CRIUGM/Universit
de Montral, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Arteries throughout the body stiffen with age, but vessel hardening may start at the level of the aorta and progress to other organs, including the brain. Vascular impairment may contribute to cognitive changes observed with aging. Furthermore, it may be that regular exercise acts as a modulator to partially attenuate the effects of age on vascular and metabolic physiology. Here we show imaging results indicative of a link between vascular health at the level of the aorta, the carotids and the brain with measures of cardiovascular fitness and cognition.