Seattle, WA, USA. The Allen Institute for Brain Science released the world's first anatomically and genomically comprehensive human brain map.

The mappings, based on microarray data from two complete human brains, are the foundation for the Allen Human Brain Atlas, an online research tool and public resource for understanding of how the human brain works.


Allen Human Brain Atlas

The Atlas integrates several different kinds of data across different scales of brain exploration.

The data are from magnetic resonance imaging ( MRI), diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), as well as histology and gene expression data derived from both microarray and in situ hybridization (ISH) approaches.

Users comprise a diverse array of biomedical researchers — primarily neuroscientists — throughout the world. They include scientists who study the human brain itself, as well as those working in mouse and other model systems, offering the opportunity to probe the scalability and relevance of the findings to humans.

The Allen Institute will continue to acquire new data from additional brains, as well as developing enhanced tools for searching, analyzing and viewing the data.

The Allen Human Brain Atlas is free and available to scientists, physicians and the education community as an online public resource.The Allen Institute has now thoroughly characterized and mapped the biochemistry of two normal adult human brains, providing opportunities for scientists to study the brain with new detail and accuracy.

The data reveal a striking 94 percent similarity between human brains, establishing strong patterns as a critical foundation for translational and clinical research. In addition, data analysis from the two human brains indicate that at least 82 percent of all human genes are expressed in the brain, highlighting its tremendous complexity while also providing an essential genetic blueprint to understand brain functionality better and propel research in neurologic disease and other brain disorders.

"Until now, a definitive map of the human brain, at this level of detail, simply hasn't existed," said Allan Jones, Ph.D., the Institute's Chief Executive Officer. "The Allen Human Brain Atlas provides never-before-seen views into our most complex and most important organ."

"Understanding how our genes are used in our brains will help scientists and the medical community better understand and discover new treatments for the full spectrum of brain diseases and disorders, from mental illness and drug addiction, to Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, multiple sclerosis, autism and more."

Similar to a high-powered, multi-functional GPS navigation system, the Atlas identifies 1,000 anatomical sites in the human brain, backed by more than100 million data points that indicate the particular gene expression and underlying biochemistry of each site.

Scientists use the Atlas to explore the human brain and identify how disease and trauma, including physical brain injuries and mental health disorders, affect specific areas of the brain. This makes it possible to pinpoint where a particular drug acts anatomically in the brain, to ultimately better control the successful outcome of numerous therapies.

Previously, as its inaugural initiative, the Allen Institute for Brain Science completed mappings of the adult mouse brain in 2006, similarly making the data available free to scientists. Overall, those data have led to a number of significant research advances around the world, including the publishing of over 500 peer-reviewed papers citing the Allen Mouse Brain Atlas to support research conclusions.

The new comprehensive gene map of the human brain is a previously unthinkable feat that was made possible through leading-edge technology and more than four years of rigorous studies and documentation.

"The Allen Institute is a powerful force in modern science," said Dr. Edward Jones, neuroscientist at the University of California, Davis.

"They've applied an industrialized approach and high-output technology to accomplish what no other lab has ever done. The original data produced for the mouse brain revolutionized neuroscience and now the Allen Human Brain Atlas delivers extremely rare and essential information that most researchers could not otherwise access. They are truly paving the way for the future of research."

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