Insulin resistance, brain atrophy, and cognitive performance in late middle-aged adults.

Willette, A., G. Xu, S. Johnson, A. Birdsill, E. Jonaitis, M. Sager, B. Hermann, R. La, S. Asthana, and B. Bendlin. “Insulin Resistance, Brain Atrophy, and Cognitive Performance in Late Middle-Aged Adults.”. Diabetes Care, Vol. 36, no. 2, 2013, pp. 443-9.

Insulin resistance dysregulates glucose uptake and other functions in brain areas affected by Alzheimer disease. Insulin resistance may play a role in Alzheimer disease etiopathogenesis. This longitudinal study examined whether insulin resistance among late middle-aged, cognitively healthy individuals was associated with 1) less gray matter in Alzheimer disease-sensitive brain regions and 2) worse cognitive performance.

DOI: 10.2337/dc12-0922

PubMed: 23069842