Bryan Brain Bank and Biorepository

For nearly three decades, the Duke Kathleen Price Bryan Brain Bank and Biorepository has been recognized as a premier biorepository for Alzheimer’s disease science. The Brain Bank provides Duke researchers and academic and industry collaborators worldwide with access to longitudinal clinical information, quality biospecimens, and services to support and advance basic and clinical research.

The Bryan Brain Bank and Biorepository is part of the Duke/UNC Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (ADRC), a collaborative effort working to identify the biological factors involved in normal brain aging and disease with the help of a diverse group of young and older people with and without memory impairments.

The Duke/UNC ADRC is actively seeking participants to be a part of our research. To learn more about ways that you can participate in future research, please contact the ADRC at 919-660-2340. Learn more about how you can be a part of the ADRC's efforts here.

The Duke Kathleen Price Bryan Brain Bank and Biorepository (Duke BBB) collection includes the following neurological conditions:

  • 750 brains from patients with Alzheimer's Disease and related dementing disorders
  • 250 brains with other neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Huntington's disease and muscular dystrophy
  • 200 normal control brains

The Duke BBB sample types include:

  • Over 1,100 frozen and formalin-preserved brains
  • 400 cerebral spinal fluid biospecimens that accompany the brain specimens
  • 6,200 DNA samples
  • Data that can accompany samples including clinical, pathology, and neurocognitive data

Duke BBB’s autopsy program coordinates tissue retrieval from a variety of different sources, including participants in Bryan ADRC clinical studies and from Duke Hospital.  The tissue is preserved, catalogued, and stored in the Duke BBB.

Resource Request Portal

As part of the NIH-funded Duke/UNC Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, it is our mission to share our resources and facilitate collaborations aimed at improving diagnosis and care for all people with Alzheimer's Disease and related dementias. Through the Duke/UNC ADRC Resource Request portal below, investigators can request access to our database of brain tissue, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), DNA, blood, and other AD related data. Letters of Support and permission to recruit participants can also be submitted via the portal below.

The Duke/UNC ADRC Executive Committee Resource Review Committee (RRC) reviews resource requests for scientific merit and availability of requested resources. We look forward to receiving your request. Thank you.