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Anders M Fjell

@andersfjell.bsky.social
196 followers 118 following 61 posts

Professor of psychology. Center for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition. University of Oslo. Interested in the brain from the start to the end. www.lcbc.uio.no

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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
New in @natneuro.nature.com : Cortical thickness changes precede PET Abeta positivity with several years @lcbc-uio.bsky.social @jamesmroe.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Cortical thickness changes precede high levels of amyloid by at least 7 years - Nature Neuroscience
Longitudinal MRI reveals that the cortex becomes relatively thicker years before amyloid positivity is detected on PET, providing insight into the earliest brain changes and potential consequences of ...
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
New in @pnas.org When did the Flynn effect reverse? Earlier than we thought, but rising high-school completion among lower-SES children temporarily masked the decline. Reversal: highest SES ~1969; lowest SES ~1978. @lcbc-uio.bsky.social @olerogeberg.bsky.social www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
Congrats @numcog.bsky.social , well deserved!
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
How long can humans live? "If anti-ageing research worked, even a little, it would be obvious. An eight-year reduction in biological age would halve the risk of death. It would not need marketing." www.nature.com/articles/d41...
nature.com
How long can humans live? We simply don’t know
Claims about the upper limits to human lifespan are characterized by hype, deficient data and shoddy science, says longevity researcher Saul Newman.
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opfuchs.gay @opfuchs.gay · 29/05/2026
Interesting result
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MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge @mrccbu.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
Using a stochastic dynamical model, Grodem et al show that, before age 60, inter-individual differences in neuroanatomical volumes almost exclusively reflect stable differences between individuals, rather than systematic differences in rate-of-change: doi.org/10.1162/IMAG.a.1242
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Imaging Neuroscience @imagingneurosci.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
New paper in Imaging Neuroscience by Edvard O.S. Grødem, Anders M. Fjell, et al: Stable individual differences dominate adult brain volume variation until later life doi.org/10.1162/IMAG...
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Center for Lifespan Psychology, MPI for Human Development @lipmpib.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Paper out now involving LIP colleagues @brandmaier.bsky.social and Ulman Lindenberger!
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 25/05/2026
Another implication: BrainAge models usually do not reflect aging differences -> it is critical to distinguish stable early-adulthood levels from systematic differences in change when studying adult brain aging
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 25/05/2026
Up to age 60, adult brain volume completely dominated by stable individual diffs. At 80 yrs, up to 50% reflects differences in change. Interpretation: 1) We change similarly up to 60. 2) Group comparisons often not reflecting changes. @Edvardosg @LCBC_UiO direct.mit.edu/imag/article...
direct.mit.edu
Stable Individual Differences Dominate Adult Brain Volume Variation Until Later Life
Abstract. Individual differences in the volumes of brain structures are often linked to various conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease, schizophrenia, and overall brain health. However, it remains ...
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
Cognitive function at age 13 predicts dementia 60 years later, even controlling for cardiovascular and cardiometabolic risk. @KWalhovd www.medrxiv.org/content/10.6...
medrxiv.org
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
Interested in neuroimaging and cognition in aging and want to work with us? We have an open position @KWalhovd @LCBC_UiO 2411.webcruiter.no/Main2/Recrui...
2411.webcruiter.no
Researcher in neuroimaging and cognitive change of aging
We have a 3-year researcher position for analysing longitudinal brain MRI data in relation to cognitive- and other biomarker data.The shift to a biomarker-based definition of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) ...
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
Use of brain age models frequently lead to wrong conclusions - unfortunately it is not easy to fix. Fortunately, there are better alternatives. @edvardg.bsky.social @fmrib-steve.bsky.social @didacvp.bsky.social @maxwellelliott.bsky.social @k.b.walhovd www.medrxiv.org/content/10.6...
medrxiv.org
Reconsidering Brain Age: Why Age-Prediction Models Fail as Measures of Brain Aging
Brain age models - machine-learning predictions of chronological age from brain imaging - are widely interpreted as markers of accelerated brain aging. Here we show that this interpretation cannot be ...
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#NeuroDegeneration preprints @prepub-neurodegen.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Reconsidering Brain Age: Why Age-Prediction Models Fail as Measures of Brain Aging #NeuroDegeneration 🧪🧠 www.medrxiv.org/content/10.64898/20…
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
New Cochrane review on effects of the anti-amyloid drugs: "Successful removal of amyloid from the brain does not seem to be associated with clinically meaningful effects ... research should focus on other mechanisms of action." www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10....
cochranelibrary.com
Amyloid‐beta‐targeting monoclonal antibodies for people with mild cognitive impairment or mild dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease - Nonino, F - 2026 | Cochrane Library
Select your preferred language for Cochrane reviews and other content. Sections without translation will be in English.
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
Dementia incidence declines - we find generational improvements in level and age-change in episodic memory combined account for the full effect. Effects strongest with most decline, supported by hippocampal atrophy. ~783,000 memory assessments www.medrxiv.org/content/10.6...
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
Great work @drmowinckels.io !!
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
Thanks a lot Simon!
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
This work suggests we need to look at aging as a complex system with critical transitions, not just gradual wear and tear.
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
Why does this matter? If decline is "punctuated," treating aging as a smooth erosion misses the critical windows for intervention. We need to understand what triggers the transition from a stable plateau to a drop.
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
However, the core finding was that the "Smooth Decline" is largely a statistical artifact of averaging. When we look at individuals, we see that memory aging is often "punctuated": extended plateaus of stability interrupted by abrupt, state-like transitions of loss.
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
We harmonized data across 3 major cohorts (SHARE, HRS, Betula). We also looked at MRI data from ~2,000 people to see the brain basis of these changes. Stability is real for ~10% > 70 years over a decade, with less brain atrophy in the medial temporal lobe.
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
Does memory fade slowly, or in drops and bursts? We analyzed 728k tests from 210k people. Key finding: “stability” isn’t a trait you either have or don’t have - it’s often a time-limited state at different points in aging. Preprint "Punctuated Memory Change": 👇 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
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Giulio Maria Pasinetti, MD, PhD @giuliompasinetti.bsky.social · 14/01/2026
An international research effort combining brain imaging and memory testing from thousands of adults is offering a clearer picture of how age-related brain changes affect memory. @andersfjell.bsky.social Learn More in Nature Communications @natureportfolio.nature.com 👉 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
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MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge @mrccbu.bsky.social · 27/11/2025
Why do some people lose memory faster with age? A mega-analysis of 13 longitudinal datasets (3,700+ adults, 10,000+ MRIs) shows that memory decline tracks brain atrophy, especially in the hippocampus, and that these links strengthen with age, but not APOE status: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
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Jamie Hanson @jamielarsh.bsky.social · 26/11/2025
Vulnerability to memory decline in aging revealed by a mega-analysis of structural brain change www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Vulnerability to memory decline in aging revealed by a mega-analysis of structural brain change - Nature Communications
Across 13 longitudinal studies (3,737 adults), the authors show that brain atrophy parallels memory loss, with a stronger coupling in later life. APOE ε4 increases decline, yet genetic risk does not m...
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Marieke van Vugt @mvugt.bsky.social · 27/11/2025
" Our mega-analysis reveals a nonlinear relationship between memory decline and brain atrophy, primarily affecting individuals with above-average brain structural decline. "
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 28/11/2025
Very impressed with @didacvp.bsky.social's work in @natcomms.nature.com, the most thorough mapping of longitudinal memory-atrophy relationships in normal aging, showing both global and memory-specific associations, which grow stronger with age. Early accsess here: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
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Hugo Spiers @hugospiers.bsky.social · 27/11/2025
Impressive MEGA-analysis: Vulnerability to memory decline in aging revealed by a mega-analysis of structural brain change www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Vulnerability to memory decline in aging revealed by a mega-analysis of structural brain change - Nature Communications
Across 13 longitudinal studies (3,737 adults), the authors show that brain atrophy parallels memory loss, with a stronger coupling in later life. APOE ε4 increases decline, yet genetic risk does not m...
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
Thanks for the fun and interesting discussions @kathrynbates.bsky.social and Chloe Carrick
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Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences @pnas.org · 22/10/2025
Over 12,500 brain scans from cognitively healthy adults reveal that sex differences in age-related brain atrophy can’t explain why women have higher rates of Alzheimer's disease. The authors call for research into alternative explanations. In PNAS: ow.ly/hIYj50XgiCn
Older woman with brain drawing superimposed on her head. Stock image.
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 20/10/2025
It is this type of sky over the university. Morning office window view.
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
@nature.com made a news piece on our new @pnas.org paper. Good job Anne Ravndal! Men’s brains shrink faster than women’s: what that means for Alzheimer’s. www.nature.com/articles/d41...
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Cam-CAN @camcan-2010.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
Another interesting paper from LifeBrain consortium suggesting that sex differences in healthy brain aging are unlikely to explain higher prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease in women www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
pnas.org
Sex differences in healthy brain aging are unlikely to explain higher Alzheimer’s disease prevalence in women | PNAS
As Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is diagnosed more frequently in women, understanding the role of sex has become a key priority in AD research. However,...
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
Takeaway: sex gaps in structural brain aging are modest and we must look beyond atrophy to explain women’s higher AD diagnosis rates. Other biomarkers? Or maybe non-biological causes?
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
@pnas.org: Small sex differences in brain aging, steeper decline in men in some regions. Does not explain why more women are diagnosed with AD. 12,638 longitudinal MRIs, 4,726 participants across 14 cohorts. Control for head-size, education, life-expectancy. www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
pnas.org
Sex differences in healthy brain aging are unlikely to explain higher Alzheimer’s disease prevalence in women | PNAS
As Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is diagnosed more frequently in women, understanding the role of sex has become a key priority in AD research. However,...
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 21/08/2025
Effects remained even when accounting for amyloid level. Reflect an immune response to accumulating, sub-threshold Aβ? Preexisting effects of higher cortical thickness in those that subsequently develop high Aβ? Protective factor?
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 21/08/2025
Using 4570 longitudinal MRIs + 1684 Aβ PET scans from cognitively healthy older adults @jamesmroe.bsky.social find cortical thickness changed ≥7 years before PET-detectable Aβ. Those who later developed high Aβ already had thicker cortex & less thinning. @LCBC_uio www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
biorxiv.org
Cortical thickness changes precede high levels of amyloid by at least seven years
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is now defined based on its underlying brain pathology, with the presence of amyloid (Aβ) plaques at high enough levels sufficient to warrant a diagnosis in the absence of cog...
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Prof Sam Illingworth @samillingworth.com · 12/08/2025
🧠 Education boosts memory levels but not brain aging resistance A new study across 33 countries found more education links to better memory and larger brain volume, but not slower cognitive or brain decline. 🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41... #SciComm 🧪
nature.com
Reevaluating the role of education on cognitive decline and brain aging in longitudinal cohorts across 33 Western countries - Nature Medicine
In a large cross-national study, education was linked to better memory and larger brain volumes but not to slower cognitive or brain decline with age, suggesting that the association reflects early-li...
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 06/08/2025
@natmed.nature.com made a nice Research Briefing about our paper. Highglights with less details, the main conclusion is the same: Education does not affect memory decline or brain aging @LCBC_UiO @LifebrainEU www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Education does not affect memory decline or brain aging - Nature Medicine
Competing explanations account for education’s link to better memory and brain structure in older age. By analyzing more than 400,000 memory scores and over 15,000 MRI scans, we found the association ...
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Torkild Hovde Lyngstad @torkildl.bsky.social · 04/08/2025
🧠💡 CAN YOU SAVE YOUR FUTURE BRAIN BY GETTING A DEGREE? A new Nature Medicine paper—led by @andersfjell.bsky.social—analyzed 407,000 memory tests and 15,000 brain scans across 33 countries to find out whether education protect you from cognitive decline at older ages. The answer: not really. [1/5]
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 01/08/2025
People with more education did better — but declined just as fast. The takeaway: To reduce dementia risk, we may need to shift from boosting adult cognitive reserve to investing in early education. #Lifecourse #BrainHealth #DementiaPrevention
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 01/08/2025
The three #LancetCommission reports on #DementiaPrevention have shifted focus from early schooling to longer education as protection against dementia. Our new results suggest this shift may be misguided: early-life factors, not adult education, likely drive the effect.
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 01/08/2025
New in @NatureMedicine Education is not linked to slower memory or brain decline in aging. We analyzed 400,000 memory tests and 15,000 MRIs from 33 countries. Associations likely shaped by childhood schooling and development. @LCBC_UiO @LifebrainEU rdcu.be/ex8iC
rdcu.be
Reevaluating the role of education on cognitive decline and brain aging in longitudinal cohorts across 33 Western countries
Nature Medicine - In a large cross-national study, education was linked to better memory and larger brain volumes but not to slower cognitive or brain decline with age, suggesting that the...
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rogier kievit @rogierk.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
New paper by @njudd.com shows that an additional year of education doesn't causally affect telomere length in old age, despite many (theory) accounts arguing otherwise. It's been desk rejected by 13 journals happy to publish small 'positive' telomere studies. Sigh. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 30/05/2025
This is a really interesting paper - showing what you can and cannot infer about individual differences in change from x-sect data. A take-home-message is that typical brain age models cannot be used to measure differences in brain aging - deviations reflect stable differences between people.
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 30/05/2025
Finally, similar to the conclusion of @didacvp.bsky.social direct.mit.edu/imag/article... long follow-up time between scans yields much higher sensitivity to detect individual differences in change than many scans: 2 scans over 4 yr better than 12 scans over 1 yr
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 30/05/2025
Brain age models trained on chronological age are almost deemed to pick up signal from regions where there are almost no differences in change - i.e. brain age gap says next-to-nothing about aging before 60 years. Fits perfectly with @fmrib-steve.bsky.social et al www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
biorxiv.org
Characterising ongoing brain aging from cross-sectional data
“Brain age delta” is the difference between age estimated from brain imaging data and actual age. Positive delta in adults is normally interpreted as implying that an individual is aging (or has aged)...
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 30/05/2025
Some interesting implications: Very difficult to find systematic differences between people in change before 50. The big exception is the ventricles: Larger diffs in change from earlier in adulthood.
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Anders M Fjell @andersfjell.bsky.social · 30/05/2025
Preprint: before age 60, between-people diffs in brain vols almost exclusively reflect stable diffs, while systematic diffs in rate-of-change in aging cause up to 40% of the variation to be due to change at 80 years. @edvardg.bsky.social 🧵https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.05.26.655710v1
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