A severe shortage of brains is hampering potentially groundbreaking research into the causes and nature of autism. Although funding from the charity is available, it is extremely difficult to get people to donate their brains after death. And while many are happy to sign up to the national organ donation registry, the separate process of committing to brain donation has encountered resistance.
The UK Brain Bank for Autism for instance, has appealed for brains for four years, but so far only 22 have been donated, slowing down the pace of research at a time when there is growing interest in a condition affecting as many as one in 100 people."It is a matter of regret that we can't do it faster," says Professor Margaret Esiri, director of the initiative.
She is optimistic that a clearer understanding of what happens to the brains of people with autism will lead to a faster development of interventions that could improve the quality of life of those affected by the condition. "This is a very positive thing to do, to help future generations. Those families who have done it have appreciated the opportunity. It gave some meaning to the awful experience of losing someone they loved," Esiri says. "We also need as many people as possible who don't have autism to consider donating because we need control tissue. People don't realise that a normal brain can really be valuable for research."
Please let us donate our "brains"
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