Alzheimer's disease research requires extensive neuropathology support services. Clinicians in the Clinical Core need to know whether a given individual had Alzheimer's disease or some other dementing illness. Thus, autopsy follow-up is needed on patients and controls enrolled in the clinical diagnosis and therapeutic trials. In addition, for genetic studies of familial Alzheimer's disease, definitive post-mortem diagnoses are eventually required for both clinically affected and clinically normal family members. There is also a need for """"""""outreach"""""""" programs providing diagnostic services for demented patients and their families in the community. In addition, since there are no widely accepted animal modes for this devastating illness, researchers require human brain tissue for experimental biochemical, molecular biological, and histological studies. The Neuropathology Core ha therefore been designed to fulfill three specific aims. First, fresh brain tissue will be obtained within 30-60 minutes after death through the Rapid Autopsy Program, a unique feature of this Center. Second, the Staff of the Kathleen Price Bryan Brain Bank will acquire specimens, establish pathological diagnoses, dissect and store brain tissue from demented and control patients, and release specimens to qualified investigators. Third, the Brain Bank will coordinate a routing service for histological neuropathological and neurochemical data. As part of this data management function, the Brain Bank will coordinate its data- gathering activities with those of the Research Clinical Core.
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