TY - JOUR
T1 - Musical training and brain volume in older adults
AU - Chaddock-Heyman, Laura
AU - Loui, Psyche
AU - Weng, Timothy B.
AU - Weisshappel, Robert
AU - McAuley, Edward
AU - Kramer, Arthur F.
N1 - Funding Information:
Funding: This work was supported by the National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health (Grant R37 AG025667) and funding from Abbott Nutrition through the Center for Nutrition, Learning, and Memory at the University of Illinois. The trial was registered with the United States National Institutes of Health, CilinicalTrials.gov (ID NCT01472744, Fit and Active Seniors Trial).
PY - 2021/1
Y1 - 2021/1
N2 - Musical practice, including musical training and musical performance, has been found to benefit cognitive function in older adults. Less is known about the role of musical experiences on brain structure in older adults. The present study examined the role of different types of musical behaviors on brain structure in older adults. We administered the Goldsmiths Musical Sophistication Index, a questionnaire that includes questions about a variety of musical behaviors, including performance on an instrument, musical practice, allocation of time to music, musical listening expertise, and emotional responses to music. We demonstrated that musical training, defined as the extent of musical training, musical practice, and musicianship, was positively and significantly associated with the volume of the inferior frontal cortex and parahippocampus. In addition, musical training was positively associated with volume of the posterior cingulate cortex, insula, and medial orbitofrontal cortex. Together, the present study suggests that musical behaviors relate to a circuit of brain regions involved in executive function, memory, language, and emotion. As gray matter often declines with age, our study has promising implications for the positive role of musical practice on aging brain health.
AB - Musical practice, including musical training and musical performance, has been found to benefit cognitive function in older adults. Less is known about the role of musical experiences on brain structure in older adults. The present study examined the role of different types of musical behaviors on brain structure in older adults. We administered the Goldsmiths Musical Sophistication Index, a questionnaire that includes questions about a variety of musical behaviors, including performance on an instrument, musical practice, allocation of time to music, musical listening expertise, and emotional responses to music. We demonstrated that musical training, defined as the extent of musical training, musical practice, and musicianship, was positively and significantly associated with the volume of the inferior frontal cortex and parahippocampus. In addition, musical training was positively associated with volume of the posterior cingulate cortex, insula, and medial orbitofrontal cortex. Together, the present study suggests that musical behaviors relate to a circuit of brain regions involved in executive function, memory, language, and emotion. As gray matter often declines with age, our study has promising implications for the positive role of musical practice on aging brain health.
KW - Aging
KW - Brain structure
KW - Music
KW - Musical training
KW - Older adults
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U2 - 10.3390/brainsci11010050
DO - 10.3390/brainsci11010050
M3 - Article
C2 - 33466337
SN - 2076-3425
VL - 11
SP - 1
EP - 16
JO - Brain Sciences
JF - Brain Sciences
IS - 1
M1 - 50
ER -