# Improving Working Memory in Older Adults by Restoring Large-Scale Cortical Interactions

> **NIH NIH R01** · BOSTON UNIVERSITY (CHARLES RIVER CAMPUS) · 2021 · $412,500

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
 Over the last century, we have witnessed an astonishing rise in the prevalence of cognitive decline and
dementia in older adults 1-3, which is expected to grow even faster in coming years as the global population
rapidly ages 3-5. For decades, deficits in working memory - the ability to hold behaviorally useful information “in
mind” over a period of seconds - have characterized a central feature of the normal cognitive decline observed
across the adult lifespan and the abnormal rapid cognitive deterioration associated with dementias, such as
Alzheimer's disease 6-10. These facts motivate the need to advance greater understanding of the brain
mechanisms underlying age-related working memory deficits, and develop effective methods to maintain or
even improve cognitive performance in older adults 11-13. Here, we propose to examine the mechanisms of
age-related working memory impairment in healthy humans from a physiologically inspired perspective
centered on large-scale brain networks and how they interact through synchronized electrophysiological
rhythms 14-18. We focus on neural coding schemes (i.e., cross-frequency coupling and phase synchronization)
hypothesized to index flexible large-scale circuits that integrate information across multiple temporal and
spatial scales during cognition. We combine high-density electroencephalographic (EEG) measurements of
synchronized rhythms with individually customized high-definition transcranial alternating-current stimulation
(HD-tACS) 19-21 to determine whether it is possible to modify components of frontotemporal networks and
cause improvements in working memory performance for older adults. Our preliminary data are highly
encouraging and indicate that we can causally manipulate the synchronization of long-range low-frequency
rhythms, increase local phase-amplitude coupling, and rapidly improve working memory behavior in older
adults aged 60-76 years to accuracy levels equivalent to those of 20-year-olds. The goals of the research
program are to use novel neuroscience tools and analysis procedures to gain a deeper understanding of the
brain mechanisms underlying age-related working memory impairment, and contribute new knowledge to the
development of effective, non-pharmacological interventions for improving cognition in healthy aging and
clinical populations.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10165454
- **Project number:** 5R01AG063775-03
- **Recipient organization:** BOSTON UNIVERSITY (CHARLES RIVER CAMPUS)
- **Principal Investigator:** Robert Reinhart
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $412,500
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-08-15 → 2024-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10165454

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10165454, Improving Working Memory in Older Adults by Restoring Large-Scale Cortical Interactions (5R01AG063775-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10165454. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*