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Researchers found that DunedinPACNI, a score calculated from structural features in a brain MRI, was associated with blood-based measures of aging across multiple body systems in two midlife cohorts. The results suggest a single scan may hold clues about broader physiological aging, but the study does not show that the score can diagnose an individual’s health or predict how quickly that person will age.
Researchers report that an MRI-based brain-aging score was associated with blood markers of aging across multiple physiological systems in two groups of midlife adults, suggesting that structural features in a single brain scan may offer clues about health beyond the brain. The study, published in npj Aging, tested the measure in two independent University of Pittsburgh cohorts; it does not establish that a scan can diagnose an individual’s biological age or forecast their health outcomes.
The research examined Dunedin Pace of Aging Calculated from Neuroimaging, or DunedinPACNI, a model that uses structural features from an MRI scan to estimate the pace of physiological aging. The researchers analyzed 451 participants in the Adult Health and Behavior study and 295 in the Neurobiology of Adult Health study. Both cohorts included generally healthy adults recruited from communities around Pittsburgh.
In each cohort, higher DunedinPACNI scores—indicating faster estimated aging—were associated with higher scores on composites made from blood biomarkers linked to several physiological systems. The biomarker panels differed between cohorts: researchers assessed eight markers in one and six in the other, drawn from a recommended panel that includes measures related to inflammation, metabolism, kidney function and cardiovascular health. The association was statistically significant in both groups, although the authors did not formally compare its size because the cohorts differed in recruitment and methods.
A subgroup of 224 participants in the Adult Health and Behavior study had a second blood assessment seven to 15 years after baseline. The study also reported that participants with fewer years of education had faster DunedinPACNI scores in both cohorts, even after adjustment for age and sex. These are associations, not evidence that education or a brain score caused differences in aging.
What the Scan May Reveal
The findings matter because measures of biological aging usually rely on blood tests or other assessments of bodily systems, while this approach draws on brain structure captured in one MRI. If the association holds up in further research, a brain-based measure could add information about how aging is reflected across the body, rather than describing only changes in the brain.
For now, the result is a research finding, not a clinical test. The study does not show that a person’s DunedinPACNI score can determine their future health, lifespan or need for treatment. Nor does it establish that an MRI should be used to screen healthy people for accelerated aging. The score’s relationship with blood-based aging measures offers a possible way to study shared patterns across organ systems, but the practical meaning for an individual remains unproven.
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How Researchers Tested DunedinPACNI
DunedinPACNI was developed using data from the Dunedin Study, linking midlife brain structure with earlier changes in 19 measures of physiological health. Earlier work had associated faster scores with socioeconomic disadvantage, chronic disease and mortality. The current study addressed whether the measure’s relationship with broader biological aging could be replicated across separate samples and different blood-based measures.
The Pittsburgh teams used MRI-derived cortical structure measurements and compared the resulting scores with standardized blood biomarker composites. They also tested whether the associations persisted after accounting for several conventional brain-age measures. The associations were largely consistent after those adjustments, though one cross-sectional association in the Adult Health and Behavior cohort weakened and was no longer statistically significant after adjustment for DeepBrainNet. MRI scanners, scan protocols, recruitment periods and eligibility rules differed between the two cohorts.
“The study tested whether DunedinPACNI was associated with multisystem biological aging and long-term changes in physiological health.”
— The study authors, in their report in npj Aging
Limits of the Aging Signal
The results do not show how accurately the score estimates an individual’s aging rate, or whether using it would improve health decisions. The available report describes a longitudinal subgroup with repeat blood testing, but the precise result for that follow-up analysis is not provided in the supplied material. It is therefore unclear from these details how strongly a baseline scan predicted later changes after accounting for participants’ starting biomarker levels.
The cohorts were community samples of generally healthy Pittsburgh adults, and their MRI procedures and recruitment differed. The blood composites also used different numbers of biomarkers. The findings may not apply equally to other age groups or populations. More work is needed to establish reliability, predictive value, and how much the score adds beyond established health measures.
Further Validation Needed
The immediate next step is replication in additional populations using consistent MRI and blood-testing methods, alongside reporting the full longitudinal results. Researchers would also need to establish how stable DunedinPACNI scores are over time and whether they predict later health outcomes beyond age, existing conditions and conventional brain-age measures.
Until that evidence is available, the score should be understood as a research tool that may capture a pattern linking brain structure with broader physiological aging. The study does not announce a new screening service or recommend that people obtain brain scans to assess their biological age.
Key Questions
Can one brain scan tell how fast a person is aging?
The study found an association between an MRI-derived score and blood-based measures of multisystem aging. It does not establish that one scan can accurately determine an individual’s aging rate or predict their future health.
What is DunedinPACNI?
DunedinPACNI is a research measure that uses structural features from a brain MRI to estimate the pace of physiological aging. It was developed using data connecting midlife brain structure with earlier changes in multiple health measures.
How many people were included?
The cross-sectional analyses included 451 adults in the Adult Health and Behavior cohort and 295 in the Neurobiology of Adult Health cohort. A subgroup of 224 participants in the first cohort had blood biomarkers assessed again seven to 15 years later.
Is this MRI score ready for routine medical use?
The findings do not establish DunedinPACNI as a clinical test or support using it to guide treatment or screening. Further validation is needed to show how reliably it predicts health outcomes and whether it adds useful information for medical decisions.
Source: news-medical.net
