Schedule of Events | Symposia

Characterizing the relationship between white matter integrity and spatial navigation during early aging.

Poster Session B - Sunday, March 30, 2025, 8:00 – 10:00 am EDT, Back Bay Ballroom/Republic Ballroom

Daniela Cossio¹ (danielamcossio@gmail.com), Shuying Yu², Nick Krohn¹, Rosana Sabur¹, Mary Hegarty², Emily G. Jacobs², Elizabeth R. Chrastil¹; ¹Department of Neurobiology & Behavior, University of California, Irvine, ²Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara

Successful spatial navigation is a complex behavior comprised of various multiple cognitive functions. Due to its complex nature, characterizing the exact structural underpinnings of spatial navigation remains a challenge. Navigation is also an early marker for Alzheimer’s disease, so understanding the trajectories of navigation abilities across the lifespan is also critical. To address these questions, midlife adults (ages 45-55) were recruited to undergo diffusion weighted imaging and complete three assessments of spatial navigation abilities: wayfinding, path integration (updating position and orientation without landmarks), and navigation strategy. Overall, our results indicate that white matter structural integrity supports navigational abilities in midlife adults. White matter integrity within tracts involved in limbic and motor pathways support wayfinding abilities. Path integration abilities are supported by white matter tracts which process motor and visuospatial information. Finally, white matter tracts in the limbic pathway were associated with a greater use of a hippocampal-dependent strategy. Further evidence suggests that the white matter regions that support navigation in young adults (18-35) may differ from midlife adults. Additionally, the relationship between white matter integrity and performance differs between men and women. Together our findings suggest that white matter structures may contribute to spatial navigation performance, but this relationship may differ by task, sex, and age. These results provide us with a greater understanding of human spatial navigation across the lifespan and may have implications for improving our understanding of age-related changes in cognition.

Topic Area: LONG-TERM MEMORY: Development & aging