The Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) is an Australian

neuroscience Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system (the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system), its functions and disorders. It is a multidisciplinary science that combines physiology, anatomy, molecular biology, development ...

research institute A research institute, research centre, research center or research organization, is an establishment founded for doing research. Research institutes may specialize in basic research or may be oriented to applied research. Although the term often i ...

, located in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

at the St Lucia campus of

The University of Queensland , mottoeng = By means of knowledge and hard work , established = , endowment = A$224.3 million , budget = A$2.1 billion , type = Public research university , chancellor = Peter Varghese , vice_chancellor = Deborah Terry , city = Br ...

(UQ). Founding director Professor

Perry Bartlett Perry Francis Bartlett is an Australian neuroscientist. He was awarded the Florey Medal in 2015. Bartlett first completed studies in dentistry. He later discovered he was more interested in research into the way the brain and immune system wor ...

established the QBI in 2003 with assistance from The University of Queensland,

Queensland State Government The Queensland Government is the democratic administrative authority of the Australian state of Queensland. The Government of Queensland, a parliamentary constitutional monarchy was formed in 1859 as prescribed in its Constitution, as amended f ...

, and

Chuck Feeney Charles Francis Feeney (born April 23, 1931) is an Irish-American businessman and philanthropist who made his fortune as a co-founder of the Hong Kong based Duty Free Shoppers Group. He is the founder of The Atlantic Philanthropies, one of the ...

, founder of

The Atlantic Philanthropies The Atlantic Philanthropies (AP) was a private foundation created in 1982 by Irish-American businessman Chuck Feeney. The Atlantic Philanthropies focused its giving on health, social, and politically left-leaning public policy causes in Australia ...

. The purpose-built facility was commissioned in 2004 and on 19 November 2007, the building was opened by former Queensland Premier

Anna Bligh Anna Maria Bligh (born 14 July 1960) is a lobbyist and former Australian politician who served as the 37th Premier of Queensland, in office from 2007 to 2012 as leader of the Labor Party. She was the first woman to hold either position. In 2 ...

. Since 2015, Professor Pankaj Sah has been Institute director. Professor Helen Cooper is the Deputy Director (Research). The Institute is one of nine institutes at

, including the

Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology The University of Queensland's Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN) was established in 2003. It is one of four stand-alone research institutions at the university with more than 500 researchers, students and support ...

(AIBN), the Translational Research Institute, and the

Institute for Molecular Bioscience The University of Queensland (UQ, or Queensland University) is a public research university located primarily in Brisbane, the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland. Founded in 1909 by the Queensland parliament, UQ is one of the six s ...

(IMB).

Overview

As one of Australia’s leading neuroscience research centres, the Queensland Brain Institute encourages interest in the wonders of the brain and support for neuroscience’s vital role in helping people to live healthier, happier and more productive lives. Through fundamental research, QBI researchers strive to improve the world’s understanding of the brain in health and disease and to find solutions for brain disorders, diseases and injuries, including MND, dementia, depression, stroke and mental health.

History

The Queensland Brain Institute was established in 2003 as part of an initiative to develop a bioscience precinct at the University of Queensland. Planning for the Institute effectively began in 2002 with the resolution that it would investigate the biological bases of higher brain function and its application to enhance the community’s neurological and mental health. Since its inception QBI has grown from an initial five founding groups to a cohort of 44 scientific groups and close to 450 personnel.

Research

Research at QBI focuses on the

fundamental Fundamental may refer to: * Foundation of reality * Fundamental frequency, as in music or phonetics, often referred to as simply a "fundamental" * Fundamentalism, the belief in, and usually the strict adherence to, the simple or "fundamental" idea ...

mechanisms of brain function and its application to brain diseases and disorders. Although most of QBI’s activity is basic science based on model systems (rodent, zebrafish, Drosophila and ''C. elegans'') the Institute is also involved in significant research involving humans. This not only relates to clinical studies, but also to the use of humans as experimental subjects. As of 2022, QBI focuses on five key areas: * Cognition and behaviour * Brain development and plasticity * Brain injury * Ageing and dementia * Mental health The Institute houses more than 400 staff and students. Five research centres currently exist within QBI: * The Science of Learning Research Centre (SLRC), established in 2010 * The Clem Jones Centre for Ageing Dementia Research (CJCADR), established in 2013. * The Asia-Pacific Centre for Neuromodulation (APCN), established in 2012 focuses on using deep brain stimulation to advance diagnosis and treatment of neurological diseases. * SUSTech-UQ Joint Centre for Neuroscience and Neural Engineering, officially opened in 2020, aims, through multi-disciplinary research teams, to enhance the quality of life of people impacted by disease and damage of the nervous system. * Centre for RNA in Neuroscience, which aims to work at the interface between RNA biology and the development of RNA therapies for mental health and neurological disorders.

Directors

References

External links