Mitigating cellular aging and enhancing cognitive functionality: visual arts-mediated Cognitive Activation Therapy in neurocognitive disorders

Manuela Campisi; Luana Cannella; Dilek Celik; Carlo Gabelli; Donata Gollin; Marco Simoni; Cristina Ruaro; Elena Fantinato; Sofia Pavanello

doi:10.3389/fnagi.2024.1354025

Mitigating cellular aging and enhancing cognitive functionality: visual arts-mediated Cognitive Activation Therapy in neurocognitive disorders

Front Aging Neurosci. 2024 Mar 8:16:1354025. doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2024.1354025. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Manuela Campisi¹, Luana Cannella¹, Dilek Celik¹, Carlo Gabelli², Donata Gollin², Marco Simoni², Cristina Ruaro², Elena Fantinato², Sofia Pavanello^{1

3}

Affiliations

¹ Occupational Medicine, Department of Cardio-Thoraco-Vascular Sciences and Public Health, University of Padua, Padua, Italy.
² Regional Centre for the Aging Brain (CRIC), University Hospital of Padua, Padua, Italy.
³ University Hospital of Padua, Padua, Italy.

Abstract

The growing phenomenon of population aging is redefining demographic dynamics, intensifying age-related conditions, especially dementia, projected to triple by 2050 with an enormous global economic burden. This study investigates visual arts-mediated Cognitive Activation Therapy (CAT) as a non-pharmacological CAT intervention targets both biological aging [leukocyte telomere length (LTL), DNA methylation age (DNAmAge)] and cognitive functionality. Aligning with a broader trend of integrating non-pharmacological approaches into dementia care. The longitudinal study involved 20 patients with mild to moderate neurocognitive disorders. Cognitive and functional assessments, and biological aging markers -i.e., LTL and DNAmAge- were analyzed before and after CAT intervention. Change in LTL was positively correlated with days of treatment (p =0.0518). LTL significantly elongated after intervention (p =0.0269), especially in men (p =0.0142), correlating with younger age (p =0.0357), and higher education (p =0.0008). DNAmAge remained instead stable post-treatment. Cognitive and functional improvements were observed for Copy of complex geometric figure, Progressive Silhouettes, Position Discrimination, Communication Activities of Daily Living-Second edition, Direct Functional Status (p < 0.0001) and Object decision (p =0.0594), but no correlations were found between LTL and cognitive gains. Visual arts-mediated CAT effectively mitigates cellular aging, especially in men, by elongating LTL. These findings underscore the potential of non-pharmacological interventions in enhancing cognitive and functional status and general well-being in dementia care. Further research with larger and longer-term studies is essential for validation.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; Cognitive Activation Therapy; DNA methylation age; biological aging; dementia; leukocytes telomere length; neurocognitive disorders; visual art.

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This research has been done within the framework of the “PE8 Ageing Well in an ageing society – AGE-IT” funded by the European Union – Next Generation EU – NRRP M6C2 – Investment 2.1 Enhancement and strengthening of biomedical research in the NHS.” We also thank the “Fondazione per la Ricerca Cardiovascolare e delle Malattie Neurodegenerative” for the financial support to the study.