Source-space EEG Alpha Activity Reveals Brain Age Gaps Due to Neurodegeneration and Disparity
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This study examined whether the brain age gap (BAG), the difference between chronological and predicted brain age, reflects neurodegeneration when estimated from electroencephalographic resting-state (rsEEG) α-oscillations. It also explored whether α-based brain clocks reflect sociodemographic diversity and structural inequality. The BAG was computed using spectral descriptors of α-activity in the rsEEG source space of 1,228 healthy participants, individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and patients with Alzheimer's disease or behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia, residing in ten countries with varying levels of structural inequality (Gini index). BAGs were increased in MCI and dementia groups, particularly in posterior cortical regions. Notably, BAG increased with higher level of structural inequality even among healthy participants. Structural inequality emerged as the strongest BAG predictor, surprising cognition, education, and sex. These findings underscore the potential of α-based brain clocks in detecting functional brain aging and highlight how social factors intersect with neurodegeneration, particularly in underrepresented populations.
