In recent years, brain banks have become valuable resources for examining the molecular underpinnings of various neurological and psychological disorders including Alzheimer disease and Parkinson disease. However, the availability of brain tissue has significantly declined. Proper collection, preparation, and preservation of postmortem autopsy tissue are essential for optimal downstream brain tissue distribution and experimentation. Collaborations between brain banks through larger networks such as NeuroBioBank with centralized sample request mechanisms promote tissue distribution where brain donations are disproportionately lower. Collaborations between brain banking networks also help to standardize the brain donation and sample preparation processes, ensuring proper distribution and experimentation. Ethical brain donation and thorough processing enhances the responsible conduct of scientific studies. Education and outreach programs that foster collaboration between hospitals, nursing homes, neuropathologists, and other research scientists help to alleviate concerns among potential brain donors. Furthermore, ensuring that biorepositories accurately reflect the true demographics of communities will result in research data that reliably represent populations. Implementing these measures will grant scientists improved access to brain tissue, facilitating a deeper understanding of the neurological diseases that impact millions.

中文翻译：

---

美国和欧洲的脑库：重要性、挑战和未来趋势

近年来，脑库已成为检查各种神经和心理疾病（包括阿尔茨海默病和帕金森病）分子基础的宝贵资源。然而，脑组织的可用性显着下降。正确收集、准备和保存死后尸检组织对于最佳下游脑组织分布和实验至关重要。脑库之间通过更大的网络（例如带有集中样本请求机制的 NeuroBioBank）进行合作，促进了脑捐赠比例较低的组织分布。脑库网络之间的合作还有助于标准化脑捐赠和样本制备流程，确保适当的分配和实验。符合道德的大脑捐赠和彻底的处理可以增强科学研究的负责任行为。促进医院、疗养院、神经病理学家和其他研究科学家之间合作的教育和外展计划有助于减轻潜在大脑捐赠者的担忧。此外，确保生物样本库准确反映社区的真实人口统计数据将产生可靠代表人口的研究数据。实施这些措施将使科学家能够更好地接触脑组织，促进更深入地了解影响数百万人的神经系统疾病。