Role of sex and ethnicity in the relationships among physical activity, cognition, and AD biomarkers in the HABS‐HD cohort
Jansie H. Nel, Joel S. Burma, Tamara S. Bodnar, Meghan McDonough, Gregory Knell, Melissa Petersen, Sid E. O'Bryant, Cindy K. Barha,Abstract
INTRODUCTION
Dementia prevalence is rising with population aging, disproportionately affecting females and ethnically diverse groups. Physical activity (PA) may mitigate age‐related cognitive and brain decline; sex‐ and ethnicity‐specific associations remain poorly understood.
METHODS
Data from the Health and Aging Brain Study‐Health Disparities were analyzed from 3585 participants (63% female). PA was categorized using the Rapid Assessment of Physical Activity (RAPA) questionnaire as no/little (< 4) or moderate/high (≥ 4). Outcomes included cognitive composites, plasma biomarkers, and magnetic resonance imaging–derived hippocampal subregions and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex volumes.
RESULTS
Higher PA was associated with higher global cognition and executive functions in all females and in Hispanic males ( p s < 0.05), higher episodic memory and larger hippocampal volumes across participants ( p s < 0.05), and lower amyloid beta 40, total tau, and larger hippocampal subregion volumes in females ( p s < 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS
Findings support PA as a modifiable factor associated with healthy brain aging, emphasizing the importance of incorporating sex and ethnicity into future research.