--- title: "Mapping the Human Connectome During Typical Aging (HCP-A) & Vulnerability and Resiliency in the Aging Adult Brain Connectome (AABC)" id: "8712" type: "study" slug: "sa000079" published_at: "2026-02-06T19:41:17+00:00" modified_at: "2026-03-26T16:44:08+00:00" url: "https://dss.niagads.org/studies/sa000079/" markdown_url: "https://dss.niagads.org/studies/sa000079.md" excerpt: "Changes in brain structure and function are a normal part of the aging process from middle age through older adulthood, yet relatively few studies have focused on healthy aging of brain circuitry and how it varies across people. A better..." --- ## Description Changes in brain structure and function are a normal part of the aging process from middle age through older adulthood, yet relatively few studies have focused on healthy aging of brain circuitry and how it varies across people. A better understanding of how typical aging affects the brain is sorely needed, particularly since it would provide a vital baseline for studies of numerous brain disorders whose prevalence increases with age. The AABC (formerly HCP-A) is working to uncover how brain structure and function changes as a normal part of aging by collecting and analyzing multimodal neuroimaging, behavioral, and genetic data. The AABC collected information on 1000+ healthy adults to discover how individual experiences affect ways in which different parts of the brain are connected and how these connections change across healthy adulthood. There were 2 participant populations in the study, healthy young adults ages 22-35 and healthy adults ages 36-100+. Both cross-sectional and longitudinal data was collected relevant to general health including vascular burden, genetic status, diet, physical activity, systemic health, hormonal status, and life history of stress, sleep patterns, social/community engagement, and adversity. Participants were excluded if there was a lifetime history of neurological disease, brain surgery, major psychiatric disorders, alcoholism/ drug hospitalization, major head injury, epilepsy, brain tumor, undergoing cancer treatments near head or neck, any stage 4 cancer, brain hemorrhage, brain aneurysm, subdural hematoma or stroke, Long-term use of immunosuppressants, Known genetic disorder such as sickle cell disease or cystic fibrosis, and <80 with macular degeneration diagnosis. Within the last 5 years: pharmacologic or surgical treatment by a neurologist, or endocrinologist for a period of 12 months or longer, except for back pain or thyroid or other condition that is clearly not brain-related or severe depression requiring treatment for over 12 months. Within the last 1 year: diagnosis of thyroid problems and/or changing doses of thyroid medication or heart attack. Other exclusion criteria includes diabetes diagnosed within last 3 months, significant hearing loss that prevents phone communications, vision worse than 20/200, current pregnancy, unsafe metal or devices in the body, moderate to severe claustrophobia, weight greater then 275lbs and/or BMI >35, use of migraine prevention medications, migraine less than 72 hours before 1st visit or during visit, uncontrolled high blood pressure (>170/100), severe lung, liver, kidney, or heart disease or other major organ failure, MOCA ≤19 up to age 79, MOCA ≤17 ages 80-89, MOCA score ≤16 for ages >90, and participants aged 60 to 79, a score of 29 or below on the TICSmec (If participants ages 80 and above score 29 or below on the TICSmec, we give them a secondary screen to determine their eligibility). ## PI Carlos Cruchaga *Washington University* Beau Ances *Washington University* ## Associated Datasets - [NG00186 - Genetic Component of the Mapping the Human Connectome During Typical Aging (HCP-A) & Vulnerability and Resiliency in the Aging Adult Brain Connectome (AABC)](https://dss.niagads.org/datasets/ng00186/) The AABC (formerly HCP-A) is working to uncover how brain structure and function changes as a normal part of aging by collecting and analyzing multimodal neuroimaging, behavioral, and genetic data.… [Learn more](https://dss.niagads.org/datasets/ng00186/) ## Associated Sample Sets - [snd10137 - Genetic Component of the Mapping the Human Connectome During Typical Aging (HCP-A) & Vulnerability and Resiliency in the Aging Adult Brain Connectome (AABC)](https://dss.niagads.org/sample-sets/snd10137/) The AABC (formerly HCP-A) is working to uncover how brain structure and function changes as a normal part of aging by collecting and analyzing multimodal neuroimaging, behavioral, and genetic data.… [Learn more](https://dss.niagads.org/sample-sets/snd10137/) ## Cohorts - [Mapping the Human Connectome During Typical Aging (HCP-A) & Vulnerability and Resiliency in the Aging Adult Brain Connectome (AABC)](https://dss.niagads.org/cohorts/mapping-the-human-connectome-during-typical-aging-hcp-a-vulnerability-and-resiliency-in-the-aging-adult-brain-connectome-aabc/) Approximately 1200 healthy participants aged 36 years and older will be studied by a consortium of investigators at WUSTL, Massachusetts General Hospital, UCLA and the University of Minnesota. In addition,… [Learn more](https://dss.niagads.org/cohorts/mapping-the-human-connectome-during-typical-aging-hcp-a-vulnerability-and-resiliency-in-the-aging-adult-brain-connectome-aabc/) ## Grants 1U19AG073585-01 ## Acknowledgement ### Acknowledgment statement for any data distributed by NIAGADS: Data for this study were prepared, archived, and distributed by the National Institute on Aging Alzheimer's Disease Data Storage Site (NIAGADS) at the University of Pennsylvania (U24-AG041689), funded by the National Institute on Aging. ### For investigators using Mapping the Human Connectome During Typical Aging (HCP-A) & Vulnerability and Resiliency in the Aging Adult Brain Connectome (AABC) data: Research data/samples were supported by the National Institute On Aging of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number U01AG052564 and by funds provided by the McDonnell Center for Systems Neuroscience at Washington University in St. Louis, by the Office of the Provost at Washington University, and by the University of Minnesota Medical School. ## Publications - Bradley J. **Genetic architecture of plasma Alzheimer disease biomarkers.***Human molecular genetics. 2023 Jul 20.*[PubMed link](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37208024/)