Tools and Technologies for Brain Cells and Circuits | BRAIN

The NIH BRAIN Initiative supports two major transformative consortia with complementary goals:

• The BRAIN Initiative Cell Atlas Network (BICAN), which builds on findings from the BRAIN Initiative Cell Census Network (BICCN), aims to complete a systematic census and multiscale map of the spatial organization of the neuronal and glial cell types in the brain of multiple species with an emphasis on the human brain.
• The BRAIN Initiative Armamentarium for Precision Brain Cell Access, which aims to generate and disseminate a broad array of molecular tools to specifically access, manipulate and monitor brain cell types across several vertebrate species.

In addition, programs are directed toward (1) developing novel tools for probing specific brain cell types and circuits with greater precision and sensitivity, (2) characterizing understudied cell types such as glia and vascular cells, and (3) improving surrogate experimental assays for human brain function such as organoids. This includes:

• Development and Validation of Novel Tools to Probe Cell-Specific and Circuit-Specific Processes in the Brain
• Tools to target, identify and characterize non-neuronal cells in the brain.
• Research to Develop and Validate Advanced Human Cell-Based Assays to Model Brain Structure and Function.

These projects cover developmental and adult stages as well as different physiological states. The ultimate concerted goal of these efforts is to provide both a comprehensive knowledge base and experimental access to diverse brain cell types to enable the study of their roles in health and disease.