Subject Area
Psychology, Clinical
Abstract
Cognitive decline is more common in adults with asthma, yet the biological mechanisms linking asthma to later‑life neurocognitive vulnerability remain poorly understood. This proof‑of‑concept PET study examined whether fibrillary β‑amyloid (Aβ) deposition—a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease (AD)—may contribute to this risk. 32 adults aged 50–69 (14 with asthma, 18 controls) completed 18F‑Florbetapir PET/CT imaging to quantify global and regional Aβ burden, along with a cognitive battery assessing executive control (EC), episodic memory (EM), processing speed, and verbal ability. Consistent with AD literature, greater Aβ deposition within frontal regions and the Default Mode Network (DMN) was associated with poorer EC across the full sample. Contrary to initial hypotheses, asthma diagnosis was not associated with higher global Aβ deposition and did not moderate associations between Aβ and cognition. Exploratory analyses indicated that aspects of asthma management may relate to neurocognitive outcomes: lack of inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) use was linked to higher global Aβ, while more frequent use of short‑acting β₂‑agonist (SABA) medication was associated with better performance on EM tasks. Findings suggest that, when assessed in mid‑life, cognitive vulnerabilities in asthma may be more strongly influenced by disease factors such as systemic inflammation, intermittent hypoxia, or treatment patterns rather than by Aβ deposition. These results highlight the need to examine asthma management and neuroinflammatory mechanisms to better understand cognitive aging in individuals with chronic respiratory disease.
Degree Date
Summer 8-4-2026
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Department
Psychology
Advisor
Prof. Thomas Ritz, Ph.D.
Second Advisor
Prof. Alicia Meuret, Ph.D.
Third Advisor
Dr. Holly Bowen, Ph.D.
Fourth Advisor
Dr. Sherwood Brown, M.D.
Number of Pages
98
Format
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
Recommended Citation
Salsman, Margot, "ß-Amyloid, Cognitive Function, and Asthma: a Proof-of-Concept PET Study" (2026). Psychology Theses and Dissertations. 67.
https://scholar.smu.edu/hum_sci_psychology_etds/67
