# Effects of White and Gray Matter Integrity on Cognition in A Multi-Ethnic Cohort

> **NIH NIH F30** · UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE · 2020 · $50,520

## Abstract

Project Summary
Age-related cognitive impairment in racial and ethnic minorities is one of the most important public health
issues in the US. The number of adults aged sixty-five and older is expected to double in the next four
decades, and the proportion of Hispanic/Latino or non-Hispanic black older adults is also expected to increase
rapidly. Hispanics/Latinos and non-Hispanic blacks have a greater risk of cognitive impairment compared to
non-Hispanic whites, which could be due to a greater burden of vascular risk factors in these groups. Vascular
risk factors may influence macro- and microstructural WM integrity, which may in turn damage gray matter
(GM) integrity and lead to cognitive impairment. Though global metrics of WM integrity, such as white matter
hyperintensity volume (WMHV), have been associated with cognition extensively, growing evidence suggests
that WMHV does not reflect the full extent of WM disease. Recent studies propose that a penumbra of WM
damage exists outside of WMH and is better reflected by metrics of microstructural WM integrity. Despite these
findings, the relationships between macro- and microstructural WM integrity, GM integrity, and cognition are
not well understood in Hispanic/Latino and non-Hispanic black populations with a greater vascular risk factor
burden and increased risk for cerebrovascular and cognitive disease as compared to Caucasians. In this
proposed study, I will investigate the associations between macro- and microstructural WM integrity, GM
integrity, and cognition in the mostly Hispanic/Latino, clinically stroke-free Northern Manhattan Study
(NOMAS). The central hypotheses are that MRI-derived, region-specific metrics of macro- and microstructural
WM integrity predict cognitive performance, and region-specific metrics of GM integrity partially mediate this
association. I also hypothesize that metrics of microstructural WM integrity will associate with cognition
independently from and more robustly than metrics of macrostructural WM integrity. Results from this proposed
study will provide evidence for potential targets for intervention in these at-risk populations.
These study aims support key goals of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
Strategic Plan, including: a) investment across the full spectrum of basic, translational, and clinical research; b)
promotion of clinical research; and c) establishment of a data-driven process to identify unmet scientific
opportunities and public health need within and across neurological disease. The proposed research also
addresses the NIH BRAIN Initiative by exploring brain networks through MRI metrics of WM integrity.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9959210
- **Project number:** 5F30NS103462-04
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
- **Principal Investigator:** Michelle Rae Caunca
- **Activity code:** F30 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $50,520
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-07-01 → 2022-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9959210

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9959210, Effects of White and Gray Matter Integrity on Cognition in A Multi-Ethnic Cohort (5F30NS103462-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9959210. Licensed CC0.

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