Research utilizing human brain tissues is a vital step towards mechanistic discoveries and translation of experimental findings to clinical care. Validation of candidate pathogenic changes and discovery of new mechanisms is greatly facilitated by neuropathology.
The goal of this core is to facilitate translational research by: • Increasing access to brain banking infrastructure to physician-scientists • Increasing access to post mortem brain tissue to basic and clinical researchers • Assisting with experimental design and implementation of neuropathological studies • Data collection and interpretation.
To achieve these goals, the core has two complementary components that focus on brain banking and histopathological studies. See below for a full description of our neurohistology services and neuropathology brain bank.
The Neuropathology Research CoRE
This team makes available state-of-the-art histopathological approaches to characterize fixed and frozen brain tissues, including routine stains (H&E, Silver, etc.), immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization. Preparations can be digitized and analyzed using quantitative morphometrics.
The Neuropathology Brain Bank
The neuropathology brain bank is focused on collecting and distributing high quality fresh frozen and fixed human brain tissues to researchers. The goal of the new brain bank is to expand brain collections in targeted areas, including neurodegenerative disease, neuropsychiatric disease, aging, and others. This collection will supplement existing collections and deploy modern banking protocols, including advance inventory management (i.e., parcellation and bar-coding), digital microscopy, machine learning-based assessments, and other state-of-the-art approaches. These protocols will greatly facilitate access to tissue. However, being a new collection with limited but expanding inventory, we are also dedicated to assisting researchers interface with the brain collections inside and outside Mount Sinai to gain access.
Neuropathology Research CoRE
The goal of the Neuropathology Research CoRE is to offer the highest quality neurohistopathological services to the Mount Sinai research community. We have extensive experience working with large format human brain sections to “mini-brain” organoids derived from human stem cells. Our services include:
Tissue trimming, cassetting, processing, and embedding
Cutting and routine staining of paraffin-embedded and frozen OCT sections
Large format tissue processing
Routine stains (e.g., H&E)
Special stains (LFB, Bielschowsky sliver, etc.)
Immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence for both routine and novel markers
In situ hybridization
DNA/RNA isolation from fluids and tissue specimens
Neuropathology Brain Bank
The Brain Bank CoRE provides a flexible tissue repository platform to facilitate collection, characterization and distribution of tissues and data for clinical and translational research projects with a neuropathology component. Our platform provides a modern high throughput, extensive, high quality resource. We strive to have fast turnaround time to bank and provide neuropathological data. Through this platform, we provide:
Images (gross, photomicrographs & scanned slides)
Brain tissue (fresh frozen, fixed and FFPE)
Neuropathology data and reports
Consultation services and training
Our core supports a number of brain banking projects to various degrees. For a complete list of Mount Sinai brain collections bank banks, please click here. To access the neuropathology brain bank collection or to discuss other neuropathology services, please contact John F. Crary, MD-PhD. Tissues are made available to qualified investigators following internal review.
Cost recovery: This core is subsidized by the Mount Sinai Dean’s office and other sources. However, the core relies on investigator support through a cost recovery mechanism to support brain tissue collection, characterization, maintenance and distribution. Please contact us to view the complete list of fees associated with our services.