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Management of a twenty-first century brain bank: experience in the BrainNet Europe consortium

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Abstract

Collections of human postmortem brains gathered in brain banks have underpinned many significant developments in the understanding of central nervous system (CNS) disorders and continue to support current research. Unfortunately, the worldwide decline in postmortem examinations has had an adverse effect on research tissue procurement, particularly from control cases (non-diseased brains). Recruitment to brain donor programmes partially addresses this problem and has been successful for dementing and neurodegenerative conditions. However, the collection of brains from control subjects, particularly from younger individuals, and from CNS disorders of sudden onset, remains a problem. Brain banks need to adopt additional strategies to circumvent such shortages. The establishment of brain bank networks allows data on, and access to, control cases and unusual CNS disorders to be shared, providing a larger resource for potential users. For the brain banks themselves, inclusion in a network fosters the sharing of protocols and development of best practice and quality control. One aspect of this collective experience concerns brain bank management, excellence in which is a prerequisite not only for gaining the trust of potential donors and of society in general, but also for ensuring equitable distribution to researchers of high quality tissue samples. This review addresses the legal, ethical and governance issues, tissue quality, and health and safety aspects of brain bank management and data management in a network, as well as the needs of users, brain bank staffing, donor programs, funding issues and public relations. Recent developments in research methodology present new opportunities for researchers who use brain tissue samples, but will require brain banks to adopt more complex protocols for tissue collection, preparation and storage, with inevitable cost implications for the future.

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Acknowledgments

The member brain banks in the BrainNet Europe are individually funded in a variety of ways. BNEII receives research funding from the European Community’s Sixth Framework Programme (LSHM-CT-2004-503039). This paper reflects only the authors’ views and the community is not liable for any use that may be made of the information contained herein. The generosity of research donors is gratefully acknowledged, as is the essential contribution of all the brain bank and mortuary support staff.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology (Neuropathology), University of Edinburgh, Wilkie Building, Teviot Place, Edinburgh, UK

    Jeanne E. Bell & James W. Ironside

  2. Department of Neuroscience and Neurology, Kuopio University, Kuopio, Finland

    Irina Alafuzoff

  3. Department of Clinical Neuropathology, King’s College University Hospital, London, UK

    Safa Al-Sarraj

  4. Centre for Neuropathology and Prion Research, Munchen Ludwig-Maximilians University, Munich, Germany

    Thomas Arzberger, Peer Schmitz & Hans Kretzschmar

  5. Karolinska Institutet, NEUROTEC, Geriatric Department & Huddinge Brain Bank KFC, Novum, Stockholm, Sweden

    Nenad Bogdanovic

  6. Institute of Neurology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

    Herbert Budka & Elena Gelpi

  7. Department of Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience, Imperial College, London, UK

    David T. Dexter, Steven M. Gentleman & Richard Reynolds

  8. Department of Psychiatry, University of Göettingen, Göettingen, Germany

    Peter Falkai & Andrea Schmitt

  9. Institut de Neuropatologia, IDIBELL-Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

    Isidro Ferrer

  10. Fondazione IRCCS Instituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milan, Italy

    Giorgio Giaccone

  11. Netherlands Brain Bank, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Inge Huitinga & Natasja Klioueva

  12. OPNI, National Institute of Psychiatry and Neurology, Budapest, Hungary

    Gabor G. Kovacs

  13. Centre de Pathologie et Neuropathologie Est, Universite Lyon 1-Faculte de Medecine, Laennec - Hospices Civils de Lyon, Lyon, France

    David Meyronet & Nathalie Streichenberger

  14. Semmelweiss University, Budapest, Hungary

    Miklos Palkovits

  15. Dipartimento di Scienze Neurologiche, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italy

    Piero Parchi

  16. Department of Pathology, National and Capodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece

    Efstatios Patsouris

  17. Pathologisches Institut, Abteilung, Neuropathologie der Universitat Wurzburg, Wuerzburg, Germany

    Peter Riederer & Wolfgang Roggendorf

  18. Universite Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France

    Danielle Seilhean

  19. GABO:milliarium mbH and Co. KG, Oskar-von-Miller-Ring 29, 80333, Munich, Germany

    Ameli Schwalber

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  1. Jeanne E. Bell
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  2. Irina Alafuzoff
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  21. Richard Reynolds
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  25. Andrea Schmitt
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  27. Nathalie Streichenberger
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  29. Hans Kretzschmar
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Correspondence to Jeanne E. Bell.

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Bell, J.E., Alafuzoff, I., Al-Sarraj, S. et al. Management of a twenty-first century brain bank: experience in the BrainNet Europe consortium. Acta Neuropathol 115, 497–507 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00401-008-0360-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00401-008-0360-8

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