Abstract
Choline is an essential nutrient critical to brain health. Our objective was to evaluate the association of plasma choline (Cho) and Cho‐related compounds with cognition and cerebrovascular pathology (CvP) in a subset of the Nutrition, Aging, and Memory in Elders cohort who had undergone MRI, cognitive testing, and had archived plasma (n=296, mean age=73.6, SD ± 8.1).We derived cognitive composite scores for memory, attention and executive domains, and used mass spectrometry to measure plasma concentration of free Cho, betaine, phosphatidylcholine (PC), and sphingomyelin (SM). Volumetric analysis of MRI resulted in measures of CvP (white matter hyperintensities (WHMI), small and large vessel infarcts) and brain atrophy (hippocampus, amygdala, ventricles). Statistical analyses were adjusted for demographics, co‐morbidities, and plasma concentrations of B‐vitamins, homocysteine, and cholesterol. Significance was set at p蠄0.05. Cho concentration was positively related to executive function and amygdala volume; those in the lowest tertile of Cho had higher odds of a small vessel infarct than did those in the top two combined [OR=1.71(95%CI 0.92‐3.17)]. Betaine concentration was negatively related to ventricular volume; and the ratio of SM:(SM+PC) was negatively related to the volume of WMHI. Our findings are further evidence of a role for choline in brain function and cerebrovascular health in old age. Grant Funding Source : Supported by: USDA agreement No. 58‐1950‐0‐014; NIA grant AG21790‐01; NIH grant 2T32HL069772‐11A1