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Beneficial effect of bilingualism on Alzheimer's disease CSF biomarkers and cognition.
- Source :
-
Neurobiology of Aging . Feb2017, Vol. 50, p144-151. 8p. - Publication Year :
- 2017
-
Abstract
- Bilingualism as a component of cognitive reserve has been claimed to delay the onset of Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, its effect on cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) AD-biomarkers has not been investigated. We assessed cognitive performance and CSF AD-biomarkers, and potential moderation effect of bilingualism on the association between age, CSF AD-biomarkers, and cognition. Cognitively healthy middle-aged participants classified as monolinguals (n = 100, n CSF = 59), early (n = 81, n CSF = 55) and late bilinguals (n = 97, n CSF = 52) were evaluated. Models adjusted for confounders showed that bilinguals performed better than monolinguals on digits backwards (early-bilinguals p = 0.003), Judgment of Line Orientation (JLO) (early-bilinguals p = 0.018; late-bilinguals p = 0.004), and Trail Making Test-B (late-bilinguals p = 0.047). Early bilingualism was associated with lower CSF total-tau ( p = 0.019) and lower prevalence of preclinical AD (NIA-AA classification) ( p = 0.02). Bilingualism showed a moderation effect on the relationship between age and CSF AD-biomarkers and the relationship between age and executive function. We conclude that bilingualism contributes to cognitive reserve enhancing executive and visual-spatial functions. For the first time, this study reveals that early bilingualism is associated with more favorable CSF AD-biomarker profile. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 01974580
- Volume :
- 50
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Neurobiology of Aging
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 120524355
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2016.10.013