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What is the Tissue Bank?

The Parkinson’s Disease Society Tissue Bank is funded and owned by the Parkinson’s Disease Society of the United Kingdom (UKPDS). The Society has made arrangements with Imperial College London for tissue to be retrieved, stored and made available for respectful and ethical use in research in accordance with guidelines established by the Medical Research Council and the Royal College of Pathologists.

Why was it Established?

Parkinson's disease is a debilitating and progressive disorder of the central nervous system. It afflicts a substantial portion of the population and its victims may be either old or young. Symptoms include severe motor problems and dementia. As yet, the mechanisms giving rise to the disease pathology are not fully understood. Further research is needed to aid the development of suitable treatments. For this, both normal (control) and affected tissue is required. The aim of the tissue bank is to ensure that researchers have access to the material they require to carry out their studies.

What do we Do?

When the Tissue Bank is notified of the death of one of its registered donors, a coordinator makes arrangements for the brain (and spinal cord, if possible) to be collected and taken to Charing Cross Hospital. (Please see the Tissue Retrieval, Storage and Use page of the Donors section for more information on this process.) Once there, it is processed into approximately 250 individual samples. This is done to ensure that each donation provides material to as many research projects as possible. The processing methods used differ depending on whether the brain (and spinal cord, if present) is "fresh" or "fixed". "Fresh" denotes tissue received within twenty-four hours of death, while "fixed" tissue was removed between approximately one and four days and placed in a preservative solution of formaldehyde until processing. (See Figure One: "Outline of the Procedure for a Fresh Cut-Up", for a diagrammatic representation of the process. A text-based alternative is available.)

Once processed, a small amount of the tissue is subjected to histological analysis and the rest is stored until needed. Scientists requiring material for research into Parkinson's Disease make a request to the Tissue Bank using the forms provided. If the request is approved, and the researcher agrees to the Tissue Bank's conditions, material appropriate to the researcher's requirements is released, at no charge. Also made available is relevant information such as the donor's medical history (anonymised) and the histological and neuropathological reports. (No personal or identifying information about the donor is released to the researcher, or to anyone outside the Tissue Bank.)

Until requested or disposed of, tissue is stored, either frozen at -85^oC or immersed in formaldehyde. These techniques can preserve it in a form suitable for research for a decade or more. When it is no longer usable for research, it will be disposed of appropriately and respectfully. Samples used in research are usually archived and, after a suitable length of time, disposed of similarly by the researcher.