The new £50 million Medical Research Council Centre of Research Excellence (MRC CoREs) for Human Neural Development aims to fill in major gaps in the fundamental understanding of brain growth and development.
Led by King’s College London, in partnership with University College London and The University of Manchester, it will integrate world-leading expertise with cutting-edge research.
The key purpose is to understand the critical mechanisms underpinning early brain development, from the womb to early childhood, and how their disruption can inform effective treatments.
Key markers
Until recently, there were very few ways to study the development of the human brain in a meaningful way.
The centre, using the latest technological developments, will provide unprecedented insights into the development of the human cerebral cortex, the region of our brain that enables language, planning and creativity.
It will do this by:
- imaging the developing brain before and after birth
- growing models of brain tissue in the laboratory
- harnessing the power of artificial intelligence
Using these insights, the centre aims to develop markers of healthy brain development, which can be measured in babies and children to help develop and evaluate treatments in the clinic.
Improving children’s futures
Dr Ceri Williams, Executive Director of Challenge Led Themes at MRC, said:
We are delighted to announce this new MRC CoRE for Human Neural Development, backed by £50 million of public investment.
By untangling the mysteries of human brain development in the very early stages, this centre offers a powerful opportunity to transform lives, giving us the tools to make earlier and fairer interventions for a future where every child has the best possible chance to realise their full potential.
Barriers from birth
When genetic mutations and environmental factors affect brain development in infants, the consequences are felt throughout their life.
These outcomes are disproportionately felt by minorities and families from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.
‘Black box’
Centre lead Professor Oscar Marín, based at King’s College London, said:
The human brain is a bit of a black box.
We can measure patterns of brain activity from the outside, and we can even potentially connect them to what happens later in life, but we don’t yet know how these signals actually relate to what’s happening inside the child’s brain.
This means we cannot tell which signals reflect something important about how the circuits inside the brain are developing. Until we can make that distinction, we cannot reliably predict which children are at risk or intervene early enough to make a difference.
We have now reached a point where the technologies exist to close that gap, and we can turn that understanding into real differences for children and families.
