Aperiodic and Periodic EEG Component Lifespan Trajectories: Monotonic Decrease versus Growth-then-Decline

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Abstract

Unraveling the lifespan trajectories of human brain development is critical for understanding brain health and disease. Recent research demonstrates that electroencephalography signals are composed of periodic and aperiodic components reflecting distinct physiological substrates. This dissociation raises the possibility that they follow different developmental tendencies. Here, we delineate the lifespan trajectories of aperiodic and periodic neural oscillations using a large international cohort (N=1,563, ages 5–95, resting state, eyes closed). We reveal two fundamental developmental patterns: a Monotonic decrease in aperiodic activity and a Growth-and-Decline pattern for periodic activity. Both components have inflections around age 20 and transition to a stable senescent phase around age 40. Spatially, anterior regions mainly exhibit aperiodic activity, while periodic activity concentrate on posterior regions and these patterns remain stable throughout life. Crucially, multimodal analysis shows these trajectories map onto distinct biological substrates. The periodic component’s Growth and Decline trajectory aligns with GABAergic function and myelination. In contrast, the monotonically decreasing trajectory of aperiodic activity mirrors fundamental biomarkers of biological aging, such as DNA methylation and telomere length. Transforming age to a logarithmic scale simplifies these nonlinear trajectories into a linear decreasing and a piecewise concave linear model for aperiodic and periodic components. This form provides a robust and parsimonious framework for quantifying maturation and identifying neurological deviations.

Highlights

• We delineate distinct lifespan trajectories of aperiodic and periodic neural activity in a large-scale international cohort (N=1,563, ages 5–95). Aperiodic activity undergoes a Monotonic Decrease with age. In contrast, periodic activity follows a Growth-then-Decline trajectory, peaking in early adulthood.

• Both trajectories feature a critical transition around age 20 and stabilize into a protracted senescent phase from approximately 40 onward.

• These neural trajectories map onto distinct biological substrates: periodic activity tracks integrative functions (myelination, GABAergic, and aperiodic decline mirrors fundamental aging processes (DNA methylation).

• A stable pattern observed throughout the lifespan is the spatial segregation of neural activity, where aperiodic signals are dominant in anterior regions and periodic signals are concentrated in posterior ones.

• Logarithmically transforming age linearized the developmental trajectories, yielding a monotonic decline for the aperiodic component and a concave piecewise for the periodic one. This process establishes robust linear norms for the personalized assessment of brain dysfunction.