Brain/MINDS

Brain/MINDS
Name	Brain/MINDS
Established	2014
Country	Japan
Type	Neuroscience research initiative

Brain/MINDS

Brain/MINDS is a Japanese neuroscience research initiative launched to map and understand primate brain structure and function, emphasizing translational research with implications for neurological and psychiatric disorders. Founded to coordinate projects across universities, institutes, and industry, the program engages multidisciplinary teams and international collaborations to develop tools, models, and datasets relevant to brain health and disease.

Overview

Brain/MINDS coordinates research among institutions such as RIKEN, Kyoto University, University of Tokyo, Osaka University, Tohoku University, University of Tsukuba, Keio University, Nagoya University, Hokkaido University, Kobe University, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Saitama Medical University, National Institute of Genetics, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, JST, AMED, Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, MEXT, METI, NHK, Sony Corporation, Fujitsu Limited, NTT', Panasonic Corporation, Canon Inc., Toshiba Corporation, Shimadzu Corporation, Hitachi, Ltd., Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, SoftBank Group, Denso Corporation, Takeda Pharmaceutical Company, Astellas Pharma, Eisai Co., Ltd. and other prominent Japanese organizations. The initiative intersects with international entities such as Allen Institute for Brain Science, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Wellcome Trust, Human Brain Project, US National Institutes of Health, European Research Council, Max Planck Society, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Broad Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University, University College London, University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, Stanford University, Johns Hopkins University, Yale University, Columbia University, Princeton University, University of California, Berkeley, University of California, San Francisco, California Institute of Technology, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, Scripps Research, Karolinska Institutet, Institut Pasteur, École Normale Supérieure, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, University of Toronto, McGill University, University of Melbourne, Imperial College London, King's College London, Weizmann Institute of Science, University of Zurich, ETH Zurich, Seoul National University, KAIST, Pohang University of Science and Technology, National University of Singapore, University of Hong Kong, Tsinghua University, Peking University, Fudan University.

Objectives and Scope

Brain/MINDS aims to generate detailed anatomical, physiological, genetic, and behavioral datasets for nonhuman primates and relate these to human brain data collected in clinical and population studies. The program targets conditions studied at institutions such as Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, Osaka Bioscience Institute, Rikagaku Kenkyūjo, and seeks translational outputs relevant to Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Schizophrenia, Autism spectrum disorder, Major depressive disorder, Bipolar disorder, Epilepsy, Stroke, Multiple sclerosis, Huntington's disease, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Traumatic brain injury, Migraine, Obsessive–compulsive disorder, Post-traumatic stress disorder, Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, Addiction, Tourette syndrome and other neurologic and psychiatric conditions.

Research Programs and Projects

Programs include large-scale connectomics, single-cell transcriptomics, in vivo imaging, behavioral phenotyping, genetic engineering, and computational modeling. Major projects align with methods developed at Allen Brain Atlas, Human Connectome Project, BRAIN Initiative, BigNeuron, Blue Brain Project, Mouse Brain Atlas, ENCODE Project, GTEx Project, UK Biobank, Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, ADNI, Human Cell Atlas, Human Proteome Project, PsychENCODE, OpenWorm, EUREKA, Cajal Blue Brain, Brain Initiative Cell Census Network, Neurodata Without Borders, INCF, FENS, SfN, COSYNE, Gordon Research Conferences, Cold Spring Harbor, Society for Neuroscience and technological approaches borrowed from labs of Karl Deisseroth, Edvard Moser, May-Britt Moser, Thomas Südhof, Stanley B. Prusiner, Roger Y. Tsien, John O'Keefe, Susumu Tonegawa, Erwin Neher, Bert Sakmann, Richard Axel, Linda B. Buck, Shinya Yamanaka, Katalin Karikó, Drew Weissman, Svante Pääbo, Francis Crick, James Watson, Francis Collins.

Organizational Structure and Funding

Brain/MINDS is organized across core research centers, satellite laboratories, data centers, and industry consortia, supported by funding streams from Japanese ministries and agencies as well as private foundations and corporate partners. Funders and stakeholders include Japan Science and Technology Agency, Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (Japan), Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (Japan), Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Nissan Motor Company, Japan Steel Works, Keidanren, Canon Foundation, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Wellcome Trust, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, European Commission, National Science Foundation, US Department of Defense, DARPA, Medical Research Council (UK), Agence Nationale de la Recherche, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Japan Bank for International Cooperation, Asian Development Bank.

Collaborations and Partnerships

The initiative fosters collaborations with academic institutions, clinical centers, technology firms, and international consortia, partnering with hospitals and centers such as Tokyo University Hospital, Kyoto University Hospital, Osaka University Hospital, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, Johns Hopkins Hospital, UCLA Health, Mount Sinai Health System, Karolinska University Hospital, Royal Free Hospital, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, and industry players including Roche, Novartis, Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson, AbbVie, Bayer, Merck & Co., Siemens Healthineers, GE Healthcare, Philips Healthcare, Illumina, PacBio, Oxford Nanopore Technologies, Agilent Technologies, Thermo Fisher Scientific.

Achievements and Impact

Outputs include brain atlases, standardized datasets, novel imaging modalities, genetically modified primate models, and computational tools that have influenced research at institutions like Allen Institute for Brain Science, Broad Institute, Max Planck Society, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and clinical protocols at major hospitals. The program’s work contributes to international efforts exemplified by Human Brain Project, BRAIN Initiative, Human Cell Atlas and resources used by researchers at Harvard Medical School, Stanford Medicine, Columbia University Medical Center, Yale School of Medicine, UCSF, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, University of Pennsylvania Health System.

Ethical, Legal and Social Issues

Brain/MINDS engages with ethical and regulatory frameworks developed by bodies such as Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science, Council for Science, Technology and Innovation (Japan), UNESCO, World Health Organization, European Commission, US Food and Drug Administration, European Medicines Agency, National Institutes of Health, Nuffield Council on Bioethics, Pontifical Academy for Life, Royal Society, Institute of Medicine, Hastings Center, Center for Bioethics at Harvard Medical School to address animal welfare, primate research ethics, data sharing, privacy, and clinical translation. Debates involve stakeholders including scholars from University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, Princeton University, Yale University, Harvard University, Stanford University, Columbia University, University College London, King's College London, ETH Zurich, Karolinska Institutet, policymakers and patient advocacy groups.

Category:Neuroscience research programs