BRAIN AND TISSUE BANKING RESOURCES

The NDRD Brain and Tissue Bank (Program for the Study of Neurodevelopment in Rare Diseases serves as an invaluable repository for donated tissues to be used for research into Krabbe and other neurodegenerative diseases. Currently the bank currently has 18 Krabbe donations including treated and untreated tissues, Sanfilippo and Gaucher tissues.

Tissue samples from the brain bank are shared with local and national investigators and have contributed to many important discoveries along with research into new treatments. Some of the goals of the brain and tissue bank include, diagnostic evaluation; centralized review of samples which allows for easier recognition of disease patterns and subtypes; detailed characterization of histomorphologic features to allow comparison with animal models of the disease; evaluation of treatment-related changes in disease presentation and progression; provide human tissue samples to the research community to study underlying biological processes.

Brain donation is of critical importance in furthering our understanding of neurodegenerative disorders and provides a gift of hope to future generations in the fight against Krabbe and other neurodegenerative diseases.