Mental illnesses encompass a spectrum of well-known conditions, including schizophrenia, depression, bipolar disorder, addiction, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Despite their prevalence, the alterations in brain structure and function that contribute to these illnesses remain elusive, and why some people develop these illnesses remains unclear.
The Center for Brain and Mind (CBM), is an initiative dedicated to exploring underlying brain changes that cause mental illnesses. Using advanced clinical research, contemporary human genetics studies, and innovative stem cell technology, CBM aims to develop more effective diagnostic and treatment approaches.
Several research institutes in Bangalore are working towards better diagnosis and management of brain disorders. The CBM recently organised the inaugural Bangalore Neuroscience Meeting on 04 April 2024 intending to bring together this group of scientists interested in understanding brain function in health and disease. The one-day meeting was an effort to foster collaborative research amongst the local neuroscience research community through shared knowledge, resources, and expertise, thus enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of brain research.
The meeting was attended by scientists from the National Institute of Mental Health & Neurosciences (NIMHANS), the Centre for Brain Research (IISc), the Centre for Neuroscience (IISc), the Sudha Gopalakrishnan Brain Centre (IIT Madras), Centre for Advanced Research and Excellence in Autism and Developmental Disorders (CARE-ADD) at St John’s Medical College Hospital, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research along with scientists from the National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore
The discussions in the meeting aimed to explore ways to collaborate and share colossal amounts of data that labs across Bangalore have generated over the last decades that could help accelerate discovery in the field. The meeting included discussions around the strengths of participating institutes, sophisticated clinical investigations, discovering enhanced methods of diagnosis, greater community participation, funding opportunities for strengthening research, and better diagnosis and management of brain disorders.
Following the initial introductions on various institutes, researchers presented their latest discoveries in neuroscience research, ranging from studies on neuropsychiatric, neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders to whole-brain imaging projects. Prof. Vatsala Tirumalai (NCBS) talked about neural mechanisms of predictions and cerebellum’s role in predictive processing. Prof Mohanasankar Sivaprakasam (IIT-M) shared an overview of their objective to image the entire human brain at a cellular resolution. Dr Shyam Sundar Rajagopalan CARE-ADD (St John's Medical College Hospital) spoke on the application of machine learning approaches in interpreting EEG and video observations of behaviour to diagnose Autism spectrum disorder. Prof. Thomas Gregor Issac from the Centre for Brain Research (IISc) discussed promoting healthy ageing and resisting neurodegeneration while Prof. SSupritam Ray from the Centre for Neuroscience at IISc highlighted his latest project studying consciousness.
The meeting concluded with an insightful panel discussion on the challenges and opportunities in the Bangalore Neuroscience community. Panelists encouraged neuroscientists to initiate collaborations with partners in the technology industry while emphasizing the importance of data sharing to accelerate and translate discovery for the benefit of patients with brain disorders.
CBM is a collaborative effort of the National Centre for Biological Sciences and the National Institute of Mental Health & Neurosciences, supported by the Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies.
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