Types of Donations Most Often Made

Neurological Disorder Tissue Donation

Extensive research is currently being conducted into the severe neurological disorders including Huntington's, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. Brain tissue donations are accepted by the Brain Bank from individuals with these severe disorders and the parents, siblings and offspring of individuals with these neurological disorders.

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Normal Control Tissue Donation

In order to conduct meaningful studies of various brain disorders, it is essential for research scientists to have access to tissue from normal individuals, so that experiments can be designed which identify comparative anatomical differences. For example, postmortem human brain research has contributed significantly to identifying the role of an abnormal gene in Huntington's disease and damage to a specific population of neurons in Parkinson's disease. In both cases, normal control tissue was of critical importance in detecting the differences between that which is normal and that which is not.

Basic Information About Brain Donation

Psychiatric Disorder Tissue Donation to the Harvard Psychiatric Brain Collection Division of the HBTRC

There has been a long-standing shortage of brain tissue donated by individuals with a serious psychiatric diagnosis. For comparative neurobiological investigations brain tissue is being collected from individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia or manic-depression (bipolar disorder). Tissue is also being collected from parents, siblings and offspring of individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia or manic-depression.

Basic Information About Brain Donation

Other Tissue Donation

The Brain Tissue Resource Center is interested in collecting tissue from individuals diagnosed with various other disorders not mentioned in the above categories. Interested in the various types of tissue collected?

Basic Information About Brain Donation

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