Brain Donation: A Look into the Science Behind It
In a laboratory at the University of Pittsburgh, Julia Kofler carefully examines a human brain, noting its weight, fatty plaque, and other visible features that provide insights into various diseases. This brain is just one of the approximately 2,000 human brains processed at Pitt’s Neurodegenerative Brain Bank, one of the oldest and most renowned brain banks in the country.
“We have brains from individuals of all ages and with diverse diagnoses related to neurodegenerative diseases,” said Kofler, the director of neuropathology at Pitt. The brain bank, established in 1985, has played a crucial role in advancing research on degenerative brain diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease. In recent years, the bank has expanded its focus to include the National Sports Brain Bank, investigating chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in former professional athletes.
The process of brain donation is not open to everyone at Pitt due to financial constraints. Brain donation involves significant costs, including maintaining a team available 24/7 to process brains upon availability. The bank prioritizes cases with high research significance, such as those with specific genetic variants or recent treatments for Alzheimer’s disease.
Each year, Pitt processes nearly 100 brains, with about half of them meeting the criteria for inclusion in the brain bank. The rest are used for various research purposes. The need for new brains arises from the use of older tissue and advancements in research techniques that require fresh samples.
After a patient’s death, the brain bank team carefully removes the brain, ensuring that brain donors can still have open-casket funerals if desired. The brain is divided into two hemispheres, with one half kept fresh and the other placed in a fixative solution for further processing into slides. The examination of the brain reveals visible abnormalities, such as shrinkage in dementia or lesions indicating a stroke.
The brain is then sliced into cross-sections, with samples taken from different regions for analysis. These samples are processed into slides, dyed, and examined under a microscope to identify patterns of tau proteins associated with diseases like Alzheimer’s and CTE.
Families who donate their loved one’s brain receive detailed reports on the diagnoses and disease stages. This information can reveal multiple brain disorders in elderly individuals, impacting treatment effectiveness. Researchers are exploring biomarkers to detect diseases like CTE while patients are alive, as many conditions are only definitively diagnosed postmortem.
The Neurodegenerative Brain Bank collaborates with research organizations worldwide and shares slides and brain images for further studies. Individuals interested in brain donation can contact the Brain Donation Program at Pitt or enroll in the Brain Donation Project national registry.
Brain donation plays a crucial role in advancing our understanding of neurodegenerative diseases and developing effective treatments. By contributing to science, donors and their families are making a lasting impact on research and healthcare.
