Human brain tissue repository: A national facility fostering neuroscience research

Abstract

The lack of appropriate animal models to understand the biology and evolution of neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders and the fact that studies on experimental animals cannot substitute evaluation on human tissues has led to the establishment of Human Brain Bank for tissues and tissue fluids as resource centres. These Biobanks, collect, preserve and distribute fresh and fixed human tissue samples collected following autopsy and surgical resection with informed consent of patient/close relatives to bank and use the material for research following scientific ethics guidelines of ICMR. This attempt constitutes "converting biological waste into precious human tissue resource for research". Many significant discoveries are made in the past utilising the human brain, establishing the usefulness of Biobanking in medical research understanding pathogenesis of human diseases, their genetic basis of neurological and psychiatric illnesses. Continued functioning of such a facility needs close co-operation and commitment of clinical neuroscientists, pathologists and basic scientists. A Human Brain Tissue Repository at National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore, South India has been functioning for the past 18 years contributing to the progress of neuroscience. With the occurrence of natural and man-made calamities like Bhopal gas tragedy, Co-60 leak in West Delhi, it is imperative for us to learn lessons by banking and analysing the tissues to understand altered biology and face the future events in preparedness. This makes the establishment of Brain Bank and Biobanks in India, a national priority as a planned strategy to face the disease and disaster in well informed and planned way. © 2013 The National Academy of Sciences, India.