The relationship of glucose-stimulated insulin secretion to cerebral glucose metabolism and cognition in healthy middle-aged and older adults.

• Two-hour oral glucose tolerance test, FDG PET, and cognition were assessed. • Indices of insulin secretion (IS) and resistance were derived from the oral glucose tolerance test. • Lower IS predicted higher cerebral glucose metabolism in middle-aged adults. • IS was not related to cerebral glucose metabolism in older adults. • Lower IS was related to better immediate recall. Insulin resistance (IR) has been related to reduced cerebral glucose metabolism in regions identified as hypometabolic in Alzheimer's clinical syndrome. Insulin secretion (IS) has been less studied than IR despite findings that decreased IS is an early indicator of future type 2 diabetes and a potential predictor of Alzheimer's clinical syndrome. We investigated whether higher IR and lower IS would be associated with greater age-related reductions in regional cerebral glucose metabolism and worse cognitive performance. Two-hour oral glucose tolerance testing and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography were performed on 1–2 occasions on a sample of healthy middle-aged and older adults from the Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Center. Neuropsychological tests were completed during Alzheimer's Disease Research Center Clinical Core visits. Pattern of findings suggested that lower (not higher) IS was related to higher regional cerebral glucose metabolism in middle aged but not older adults, and lower (not higher) IS was also related to better immediate recall. In the context of healthy insulin sensitivity, lower IS may be beneficial to brain health. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]