IIT Madras releases detailed 3D high-resolution images of human fetal brain

The research is led by Prof Mohanasankar Sivaprakasam, Head, Sudha Gopalakrishnan Brain Centre, IIT Madras.

Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) has released detailed 3D High-Resolution images of the fetal brain.s of the fetal brain.

5,132 Brain sections were captured digitally using cutting-edge Brain Mapping Technology developed by Sudha Gopalakrishnan Brain Centre in the Institute.

The research is led by Prof. Mohanasankar Sivaprakasam, Head, Sudha Gopalakrishnan Brain Centre, IIT Madras. This Data Set, termed ‘DHARANI’, is available as open source for all researchers worldwide.

5,132 Brain sections were captured digitally using cutting-edge Brain Mapping Technology developed by Sudha Gopalakrishnan Brain Centre in the Institute. This work will advance the field of Neuroscience and potentially lead to the development of treatment for health conditions affecting the brain, informed IIT Madras.

The research was undertaken by a multidisciplinary team at IIT Madras with researchers from India, Australia, U.S., Romania and South Africa, and medical collaborations with Chennai-based Mediscan Systems and Saveetha Medical College Hospital, mentioned the press release.

“DHARANI is now the largest publicly accessible digital dataset of the human fetal brain, created with less than one-tenth of the initial funds that powered the Allen Brain Atlas, and with a technology platform that was entirely custom-made in India between 2020 and 2022, during the COVID pandemic. IIT Madras, thus, joins the Allen Brain Institute, and India joins the US, at the table of human brain cartography where large sums are invested to provide mankind with freely-available atlases of the available knowledge about the structures that compose the human brain," said Dr Suzana Herculano-Houzel, Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Comparative Neurology.

This work was supported by the Office of Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, Kris Gopalakrishnan, IIT Madras Distinguished Alumnus and Co-Founder, Infosys, Premji Invest, Fortis Healthcare and Agilus Diagnostics. NVIDIA partnered with the Centre to help process these petabytes of brain data, stated IIT Madras.

“I am delighted that India is at the forefront in generating human fetal brain maps for the first time through this cutting-edge technology developed by IITM’s Brain Centre. We are pleased that the support from our office has seeded this pioneering effort advancing scientific knowledge in this frontier area of brain sciences, and has generated a global resource for researchers worldwide," said Prof Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India.

The key applications of generating such high-resolution brain images are advancements to current fetal imaging technologies, for early diagnosis and treatment for developmental disorders.

“This accomplishment reconfirms that Indian R&D can create world-class science and technology. It also demonstrates the success of a unique public-private-philanthropy-partnership (PPPP) model. We must dream big to create global impact. Ambitious research programs are multi-disciplinary and multi-year, and I hope this program inspires more such programs in India and will get private and public support," said Kris Gopalakrishnan, IIT Madras Alumnus and Co-Founder, Infosys.

“This Study will pave way for new scientific discoveries, allowing quantification of neurodevelopmental disorders and advances in fetal medicine. This is now the largest publicly accessible digital dataset of the human fetal brain, advancing current knowledge by 20X. This is the first time such advanced human neuroscience data has been produced from India and made freely available as a global resource," said Prof Mohanasankar Sivaprakasam, Head, Sudha Gopalakrishnan Brain Centre, IIT Madras.