082415/Z/07/Z: Mind Over Matter: Exploring Brain Donation and its Role in Biomedical Science

Project Summary:Dementia, which literally means ‘without mind’, affects cognition and can cause dysfunction of memory, attention, language or problem solving, in many cases leading to a total disorientation in time (not knowing what day of the week, month, or even what year it is), in place (not knowing where they are), and in person (not knowing who they or others around them are). Understanding the scientific basis of this disease entails undertaking research on human brain tissue drawn from people who were affected by dementia and people who were not, at a time when the practice of retaining bodily parts for medical research has been rendered abject through past cases of unethical practice and adverse media attention. Mind Over Matter demystifies what happens behind the doors of brain bank laboratories, and in so doing actively seeks to rehabilitate, even celebrate, the practice of bodily donation in the public imagination.

Grant Holder:Dr Bronwyn C Parry

Organisation:Queen Mary, University of London

Financial Year:2007/2008