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. 2016 Oct/Dec;31(4):257-264.
doi: 10.11138/fneur/2016.31.4.257.

Main effects and interactions of cerebral hemispheres, gender, and age in the calculation of volumes and asymmetries of selected structures of episodic memory

Rocio Ramirez-Carmona, Haydee Guadalupe Garcia-Lazaro, Brenda Dominguez-Corrales, Erika Aguilar-Castañeda, Ernesto Roldan-Valadez

Main effects and interactions of cerebral hemispheres, gender, and age in the calculation of volumes and asymmetries of selected structures of episodic memory

Rocio Ramirez-Carmona et al. Funct Neurol. 2016 Oct/Dec.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to clarify the influence of anatomical (cerebral hemisphere) and demographic (age and gender) variables on the gray matter (GM) volumes and volumetric asymmetry indices (VAIs) of selected structures involved in episodic memory. A cross-sectional study was performed in 47 healthy volunteers. Neuropsychological evaluation revealed similar IQs across the sample. Using SPM-based software, brain segmentation, labeling and volume measurements of the hippocampus, amygdala, middle temporal gyrus and parahippocampal gyrus were performed in each cerebral hemisphere. A two-way between-groups multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) was applied to GM volumes and VAIs. The main effects of gender and cerebral hemisphere on GM volumes were significant (p < .001), while there was no significant interaction effect between gender and cerebral hemisphere. VAI measurements showed a nonsignificant effect of gender, but a significant influence of age (p = .015). The linear model of interactions and main effects explained 33% of the variance influencing the GM volume quantification. While cerebral hemisphere and gender were found to affect the volumes of brain structures involved in episodic memory, the calculation of VAIs was affected only by age. A comprehensive understanding of the main effects and interaction effects of cerebral hemisphere, gender and age on the volumes and asymmetries of structures related to episodic memory might help neurologists, psychiatrists, geriatricians and other neuroscientists in the study of degenerative brain diseases.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Algorithm showing the post processing steps used by the IBASPM software in the calculation of brain volumes (Alemán-Gómez et al., 2006; Tae et al., 2008).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Selected brain structures involved in episodic memory. A, Coronal T1-weighted brain MRI, the dotted lines represent the parahippocampal gyrus; B, sagittal-oblique T1-weighted brain MRI, showing the hippocampal gyrus; C, coronal T2-weighted MRI, depicting the amygdala; and D, 3D reconstruction of the brain with dotted lines showing boundaries of the middle temporal gyrus.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Line graph showing estimated marginal mean volumes of selected structures involved in episodic memory.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Line graph depicting estimated marginal means of VAIs of selected structures involved in episodic memory.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Axial and coronal brain MR images and volumetric brain reconstruction showing reported associations (white arrows) between the selected structures considered in this study. Dashed white arrows depict interconnections between brain structures involved in the episodic memory circuit (Joshi et al., 2010); some of them were not included in our assessment.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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