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Have you ever met an older person with a mind as sharp as someone much younger? They are called superagers and defy the typical cognitive decline associated with aging, particularly in memory function. Remarkably, they can maintain their memory capabilities on par with people 20 to 30 years their junior. In the five-year study, a research team compared the white matter of 64 superagers over the age of 80 to that of 55 other older adults.

The scientists measured how white matter had changed in different parts of the brain. While they found no significant differences in the overall health of the superagers’ white matter, the researchers did notice superior microstructural differences in certain white matter fibers, especially in the frontal region. “Understanding the superager phenotype can provide insights into mechanisms of protection against age-related memory loss and dementia,” the research team wrote.



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