TY - JOUR
T1 - Do age-related differences in aperiodic neural activity explain differences in resting EEG alpha?
AU - Merkin, Ashley
AU - Sghirripa, Sabrina
AU - Graetz, Lynton
AU - Smith, Ashleigh E.
AU - Hordacre, Brenton
AU - Harris, Richard
AU - Pitcher, Julia
AU - Semmler, John
AU - Rogasch, Nigel C.
AU - Goldsworthy, Mitchell
PY - 2023/1
Y1 - 2023/1
N2 - Alpha-band oscillatory activity in human electroencephalography (EEG) becomes slower and lower in amplitude with advanced age. However, the influence of aperiodic activity on these measures has received little consideration. We investigated whether age-related differences in aperiodic activity explains differences in resting EEG peak alpha frequency and power. We assessed aperiodic activity in 85 younger and 92 older adults by fitting the 1/f-like background activity evident in EEG power spectra using the spectral parameterization (“specparam”) algorithm. Across the scalp, the aperiodic exponent and offset were smaller in older compared to younger participants, reflecting a flatter 1/f-like slope and a downward broadband shift in power spectra with age. After correcting for aperiodic activity, peak alpha frequency remained slower in older adults; however, peak alpha power no longer differed statistically between age groups. The large sample size utilized in this study, as well as the depth of analysis, provides further evidence that the aperiodic component of the resting EEG signal is altered with aging and should be considered when investigating neural oscillatory activity.
AB - Alpha-band oscillatory activity in human electroencephalography (EEG) becomes slower and lower in amplitude with advanced age. However, the influence of aperiodic activity on these measures has received little consideration. We investigated whether age-related differences in aperiodic activity explains differences in resting EEG peak alpha frequency and power. We assessed aperiodic activity in 85 younger and 92 older adults by fitting the 1/f-like background activity evident in EEG power spectra using the spectral parameterization (“specparam”) algorithm. Across the scalp, the aperiodic exponent and offset were smaller in older compared to younger participants, reflecting a flatter 1/f-like slope and a downward broadband shift in power spectra with age. After correcting for aperiodic activity, peak alpha frequency remained slower in older adults; however, peak alpha power no longer differed statistically between age groups. The large sample size utilized in this study, as well as the depth of analysis, provides further evidence that the aperiodic component of the resting EEG signal is altered with aging and should be considered when investigating neural oscillatory activity.
KW - 1/f
KW - Age
KW - Alpha
KW - Aperiodic
KW - Electroencephalography
KW - Oscillations
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85141791903&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://purl.org/au-research/grants/NHMRC/1102272
UR - http://purl.org/au-research/grants/ARC/DE200100575
U2 - 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2022.09.003
DO - 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2022.09.003
M3 - Article
C2 - 36379095
AN - SCOPUS:85141791903
VL - 121
SP - 78
EP - 87
JO - Neurobiology of Aging
JF - Neurobiology of Aging
SN - 0197-4580
ER -