Association of copper levels in the hair with gray matter volume, mean diffusivity, and cognitive functions

Hikaru Takeuchi, Yasuyuki Taki, Rui Nouchi, Ryoichi Yokoyama, Yuka Kotozaki, Seishu Nakagawa, Atsushi Sekiguchi, Kunio Iizuka, Yuki Yamamoto, Sugiko Hanawa, Tsuyoshi Araki, Carlos Makoto Miyauchi, Kohei Sakaki, Takayuki Nozawa, Shigeyuki Ikeda, Susumu Yokota, Magistro Daniele, Yuko Sassa, Ryuta Kawashima

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

10 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Although copper plays a critical role in normal brain functions and development, it is known that excess copper causes toxicity. Here we investigated the associations of copper levels in the hair with regional gray matter volume (rGMV), mean diffusivity (MD), and cognitive differences in a study cohort of 924 healthy young adults. Our findings showed that high copper levels were associated mostly with low cognitive abilities (low scores on the intelligence test consisting of complex speed tasks, involving reasoning task, a complex arithmetic task, and a reading comprehension task) as well as lower reverse Stroop interference, high rGMV over widespread areas of the brain [mainly including the bilateral lateral and medial parietal cortices, medial temporal structures (amygdala, hippocampus, and parahippocampal gyrus), middle cingulate cortex, orbitofrontal cortex, insula, perisylvian areas, inferior temporal lobe, temporal pole, occipital lobes, and supplementary motor area], as well as high MD of the right substantia nigra and bilateral hippocampus, which are indicative of low density in brain tissues. These results suggest that copper levels are associated with mostly aberrant cognitive functions, greater rGMV in extensive areas, greater MD (which are indicative of low density in brain tissues) in subcortical structures in the healthy young adults, possibly reflecting copper’s complex roles in neural mechanisms.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1203-1217
Number of pages15
JournalBrain Structure and Function
Volume224
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2019 Apr 1
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Cognitive functions
  • Copper
  • Mean diffusivity
  • Regional gray matter volume

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Anatomy
  • Neuroscience(all)
  • Histology

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Association of copper levels in the hair with gray matter volume, mean diffusivity, and cognitive functions'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this