Dementia Brain Tissue Bank Operation Status and Mid- to Long-term Plan

Cho Sun-Jung, Jo Chulman, Koh Young Ho
Division of Brain Disease, Center for Biomedical Sciences, National Institute of Health, KNIH, KCDC

Demographic ageing has led to a surge in dementia patients which has led to increased investment at the national level in research to prevent dementia, which, in turn, has increased demand for dementia brain tissue and clinical information. As a result, we created the National Dementia Brain Bank of Korea (NDBBK) project in 2016. To date, the NDBBK currently operates three dementia brain banks. This project collected 81 cases of whole brain tissue and recruited 671 people who agreed to donate their brains. Through this project, we are devising methods to improve the diagnosis accuracy of dementia by establishing a standardized operating system and a standardized neuropathology-based dementia diagnosis. The goal is to secure 500 cases of whole brain tissue and recruit 3,000 people who agree to donate their brains by 2028. This project supports the vitalization of research on prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of age-related dementia by the provision of advanced brain research resources.

Keywords: Dementia, Brain bank, Brain donation, Brain research resources, Clinical information