Chinese brain researchers find evolutionary clue in elderly who stay sharp

[superadmin]

Chinese brain researchers find evolutionary clue in elderly who stay sharp and have higher quality of life in old age

• More developed frontal lobes equated with maintaining superior cognitive performance, possibly a result of natural selection in human evolution
  
• Community-based brain research that started in 2008 found some elderly people aged more slowly, leading to cognitive health project
  

A group of Chinese researchers has found that having more developed frontal lobes keeps the mind sharp in some people as they age, and is possibly a result of natural selection in human evolution.

Their study looked at how the brain structure of older adults with superior cognitive performance differed from those with mild cognitive impairment (MCI).

The study, which was published in the peer-reviewed Chinese journal Science Bulletin on November 11, found that people who had successful cognitive ageing (SCA) had a better preserved brain structure in the frontal region, while those with mild cognitive impairment showed structural deterioration in another part, the temporal region.

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