Circadian timing, melatonin and hippocampal volume in later-life adults
Corresponding Author
Chooza Moon
University of Iowa College of Nursing, Iowa, Iowa, USA
Correspondence
Chooza Moon, University of Iowa College of Nursing, 50 Newton Rd, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.
Email: [email protected]
Contribution: Conceptualization, Investigation, Funding acquisition, Writing - original draft, Methodology, Validation, Writing - review & editing, Formal analysis, Visualization, Project administration, Software, Data curation, Resources
Search for more papers by this authorKarin F. Hoth
Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Conceptualization, Writing - review & editing
Search for more papers by this authorYelena Perkhounkova
University of Iowa College of Nursing, Iowa, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Data curation, Formal analysis
Search for more papers by this authorMeina Zhang
University of Iowa College of Nursing, Iowa, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Writing - review & editing, Project administration, Data curation
Search for more papers by this authorJihye Lee
University of Iowa College of Nursing, Iowa, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Data curation, Formal analysis
Search for more papers by this authorMaria Hein
University of Iowa College of Nursing, Iowa, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Data curation, Software, Formal analysis
Search for more papers by this authorLauren Hopkins
Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Software, Data curation, Writing - review & editing, Methodology
Search for more papers by this authorVincent Magnotta
Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
Department of Radiology, University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Methodology, Conceptualization, Investigation, Writing - review & editing, Software, Data curation, Resources
Search for more papers by this authorHelen J. Burgess
Department of Psychiatry, Sleep and Circadian Research Laboratory, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
Contribution: Data curation, Methodology, Writing - review & editing, Conceptualization, Supervision
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Chooza Moon
University of Iowa College of Nursing, Iowa, Iowa, USA
Correspondence
Chooza Moon, University of Iowa College of Nursing, 50 Newton Rd, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.
Email: [email protected]
Contribution: Conceptualization, Investigation, Funding acquisition, Writing - original draft, Methodology, Validation, Writing - review & editing, Formal analysis, Visualization, Project administration, Software, Data curation, Resources
Search for more papers by this authorKarin F. Hoth
Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Conceptualization, Writing - review & editing
Search for more papers by this authorYelena Perkhounkova
University of Iowa College of Nursing, Iowa, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Data curation, Formal analysis
Search for more papers by this authorMeina Zhang
University of Iowa College of Nursing, Iowa, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Writing - review & editing, Project administration, Data curation
Search for more papers by this authorJihye Lee
University of Iowa College of Nursing, Iowa, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Data curation, Formal analysis
Search for more papers by this authorMaria Hein
University of Iowa College of Nursing, Iowa, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Data curation, Software, Formal analysis
Search for more papers by this authorLauren Hopkins
Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Software, Data curation, Writing - review & editing, Methodology
Search for more papers by this authorVincent Magnotta
Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
Department of Radiology, University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
Contribution: Methodology, Conceptualization, Investigation, Writing - review & editing, Software, Data curation, Resources
Search for more papers by this authorHelen J. Burgess
Department of Psychiatry, Sleep and Circadian Research Laboratory, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
Contribution: Data curation, Methodology, Writing - review & editing, Conceptualization, Supervision
Search for more papers by this author[Correction added on 12 March 2024, after first online publication: Third author's last name has been corrected.]
Summary
Hippocampal atrophy is a prominent neurodegenerative feature of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Alterations in circadian rhythms can exacerbate cognitive aging and neurodegeneration. This study aimed to examine how dim light melatonin onset and melatonin levels are associated with hippocampal volume in cognitively healthy individuals. We studied data from 52 later-life adults (mean age ± SD = 70.0 ± 6.3 years). T1-weighted anatomical images from 3.0 T magnetic resonance imaging data were collected and processed using the BRAINSTools toolbox. Dim light melatonin onset was used to assess circadian timing. The area under the curve was calculated to quantify melatonin concentration levels 6 hr before bedtime, and 14-day wrist actigraphy data were used to assess habitual bedtime. Multiple linear regression modelling with hippocampal volume as the dependent variable was used to analyse the data adjusting for age and sex. The average dim light melatonin onset was 19:45 hours (SD = 84 min), and area under the curve of melatonin levels 6 hr before habitual bedtime was 38.4 pg ml−1 × hr (SD = 29.3). We found that later dim light melatonin onset time (b = 0.16, p = 0.005) and greater area under the curve of melatonin levels 6 hr before habitual bedtime (b = 0.05, p = 0.046) were associated with greater adjusted hippocampal volume. The time between dim light melatonin onset and the midpoint of sleep timing was not associated with hippocampal volume. The findings suggest that earlier circadian timing (dim light melatonin onset) and reduced melatonin may be associated with reduced hippocampal volume in older adults. Future research will help researchers utilize circadian rhythm information to delay brain aging.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT
Dr Burgess serves on the scientific advisory board for Natrol, LLC and is a consultant for F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd. All other authors report no conflicts of interest.
Open Research
DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT
The data used for the current article will be shared on reasonable request to the corresponding author.
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