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Neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric conditions affecting the human brain represent some of the most devastating diseases affecting individuals, their families and society. Current treatments for these conditions are primarily aimed at reducing the symptoms and do not effectively inhibit the disease mechanisms and clinical progression. Therefore, it is vitally important that we gain further insight into the molecular mechanisms driving these diseases so that new drug targets can be identified and better therapies developed.
Brain Bank Singapore has been set up to retrieve and store brain tissue from both patients with brain disorders and healthy individuals who have consented to give this vital gift for research after death. As a prospective tissue donor programme, normal ageing tissues are just as important as tissues affected by neurological conditions in order to identify the disease mechanisms. After detailed characterisation, these tissues will be provided to important ethics committee-approved research projects within Singapore and the immediate area.
Brain Bank Singapore is a joint partnership between Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine), the National Neuroscience Institute (NNI), the National Healthcare Group (NHG) that was initiated in 2018 and, most recently, the National University of Singapore's Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine. Brain Bank Singapore complies with the Human Tissue Framework (HTF) of the Human Biomedical Research Act (HBRA) of the Ministry of Health (MOH).
If you are interested in signing up as a brain donor, please discuss your interest with your family members and/or legal representative. You may visit the website at www.brainbanksingapore.org or email [email protected] to learn more about brain donation.
At Brain Bank Singapore, post-mortem brain and CSF are retrieved from donors around Singapore, both those with and without neurological conditions, and prepared and preserved in an optimal way for vital research. The Brain Bank is designed to be reactive to the needs of the research community by also carrying out laboratory research on optimising the methods for use of human brain tissues for latest molecular techniques in order to provide the necessary materials for post-genomic era research studies.
Some tissue blocks are also preserved in the form of formalin-fixed and paraffin wax-embedded specimens which are useful for histological analysis of disease pathology. Other types of tissues, where available, can include spinal cord, peripheral nerves, muscle, gut, spleen and lymph nodes to study the interaction with the nervous system.