At the annual scientific day of the Quebec Bio-Imaging Network (QBIN) on May 23rd, Alexandre, a PhD student in the lab, intrigued the audience with his groundbreaking research on cortical aging. This event represents a significant moment for students and researchers in Quebec, offering a platform for sharing and discussing advances in bio-imaging. The laboratory delegation also included Pascale (lab director) and Xiyue (PhD student).

Alexandre chose to present part of the results from his master’s project, which is part of our larger PICCOLO project, exploring the relationship between normal cortical aging and cognitive decline. His goal is to identify strategies to mitigate cognitive decline. Specifically, the study examines whether engaging in leisure activities can induce beneficial brain reorganization -known as experience-induced plasticity- to reduce the negative effects of aging on cognition. For this project, Alexandre recruited singers, instrumentalists, and participants engaged in non-musical activities. Auditory attention was assessed in all participants and structural MRI images were acquired to study the relationship between cognitive aging and cognitive functions, particularly attention, in singers, instrumentalists, and people engaged in non-musical activities.