A centerpiece of EBRAINS’ human brain atlas is presented in “Science”

Jülich, 31 July 2020 - "Julich-Brain" is the name of the first 3D-atlas of the human brain that reflects the variability of the brain’s structure with microscopic resolution. The atlas features close to 250 structurally distinct areas, each one based on the analysis of 10 brains. More than 24000 extremely thin brain sections were digitized, assembled in 3D and mapped by experts. As part of the new EBRAINS infrastructure of the European Human Brain Project, the atlas serves as an interface to link different information about the brain in a spatially precise way. German researchers led by Prof. Katrin Amunts have now presented the new brain atlas in the renowned journal Science.

Under the microscope, it can be seen that the human brain is not uniformly structured, but divided into clearly distinguishable areas. They differ in the distribution and density of nerve cells and in function. With the Julich-Brain, researchers led by Katrin Amunts now present the most comprehensive digital map of the cellular architecture and make it available worldwide via the EBRAINS research infrastructure.

Der Julich-Brain Atlas erfasst die Grenzen zwischen Hirnarealen und bringt sie als Karte in den Atlas. Die Variabilität zwischen den verschiedenen Gehirnen kann zudem durch Wahrscheinlichkeitskarten der Lage einzelner Regionen angezeigt werden.
Der Julich-Brain Atlas erfasst die Grenzen zwischen Hirnarealen und bringt sie als Karte in den Atlas. Die Variabilität zwischen den verschiedenen Gehirnen kann zudem durch Wahrscheinlichkeitskarten der Lage einzelner Regionen angezeigt werden.
Forschungszentrum Jülich / Katrin Amunts

"On the one hand, the digital brain atlas will help to interpret the results of neuroimaging studies, for example of patients, more accurately", says Katrin Amunts, Director at the German Research Center Juelich and Professor at the University of Düsseldorf. "On the other hand, it is becoming the basis for a kind of 'Google Earth' of the brain - because the cellular level is the best interface for linking data about very different facets of the brain.

A Google Earth of the Brain

In this way, the researchers are making a significant contribution to the Human Brain Project (HBP), for which the European Commission just approved 150 million Euro until 2023. "Together with many partners in this project, we are building EBRAINS as a novel high-tech research infrastructure for the neurosciences," says Amunts, who is also the Scientific Research Director of the project.

Prof. Katrin Amunts ist Direktorin des Instituts für Neurowissenschaften und Medizin am Forschungszentrum Jülich und Professorin für Hirnforschung an der Universität Düsseldorf.
Prof. Katrin Amunts ist Direktorin des Instituts für Neurowissenschaften und Medizin am Forschungszentrum Jülich und Professorin für Hirnforschung an der Universität Düsseldorf.
Mareen Fischinger

More than a quarter century of research has gone into the 3D atlas. Dozens of experts have used image analysis and mathematical algorithms to evaluate the tissue sections over the years and determine the boundaries between brain areas, which together make up a length of almost 2000 metres.

Regions vary in their difference

Mapping showed that areas vary between different brains, for example in terms of size and location. The Julich-Brain therefore displays the position and shape of individual regions as "probability maps". The researchers found particularly large differences in the Broca region, which is involved in language. In contrast, the primary visual area appeared much more uniform.

Wahrscheinlichkeitskarte des Frontalpols, und Gesamt-Kartenansicht
Wahrscheinlichkeitskarte des Frontalpols, und Gesamt-Kartenansicht
Forschungszentrum Jülich / Katrin Amunts

As part of EBRAINS, the Jülich Brain Atlas is the starting point for bringing structure and function together. The atlas is already helping to link data on gene expression, connectivity and functional activity, for example, to better understand brain functions and the mechanisms of diseases. "EBRAINS also enables us to use the maps for simulations or to apply artificial intelligence to explore the division of labor between brain areas. The huge amounts of data generated from this are processed using the EBRAINS computing platform." The computational power comes from the new European supercomputing network FENIX, which is formed by five leading centres for High Performance Computing, including the Jülich Supercomputing Centre (JSC).

Digital brain science

"It is exciting to see how far the combination of brain research and digital technologies has progressed," says Amunts. "Many of these developments converge in the Julich-Brain-Atlas and on EBRAINS. They help us – and more and more researchers worldwide – to better understand the complex organization of the brain and to jointly uncover how things are connected.”

Brain atlas in motion

Original publication: Katrin Amunts, Hartmut Mohlberg, Sebastian Bludau, Karl Zilles: Julich-Brain – a 3D probabilistic atlas of human brain’s cytoarchitecture. Science (First Release), DOI: 10.1126/science.abb4588

Footage / video material for download:

Brain atlas in motion
(mov, source: Forschungszentrum Jülich)

Web-based access to the atlas functionalities at EBRAINS
(mp4, source: Forschungszentrum Jülich)

Laboratory recordings with co-author Sebastian Bludau
(mp4, royalty-free, source: European Comission Stockshots)

Further information:

BigBrain: The high-resolution brain model BigBrain, also published in Science in 2013, was included in the Julich-Brain Atlas and is also available via EBRAINS. It is currently being investigated using new AI-based methods in the international HIBALL-Lab.
"Micrometre by Micrometre: Decoding the Human Brain with AI", Interview with Prof. Katrin Amunts, June 2020

Use of atlas maps for the analysis of genetic data (german):
"Von der Genexpression zur Mikrostruktur des Gehirns" Press release of the Forschungszentrums Jülich April 2018

Institute of Neurosciences and Medicine, Structural and functional organisation of the brain (INM-1)

Website EBRAINS

Website Human Brain Project

Contact:

Prof. Dr. med. Katrin Amunts
Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1), Forschungszentrum Jülich
and C. and O. Vogt-Institute of Brain Research, Universitätsklinikum Düsseldorf
and Chairwoman of Science and Infrastructure Board (SIB) of the Human Brain Project (HBP)
Tel.: +49 2461 61-4300
E-Mail: k.amunts@fz-juelich.de

Press contact:

Peter Zekert
Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1), Forschungszentrum Jülich
Tel.: +49 2461 61-96860
E-Mail: p.zekert@fz-juelich.de

Dr. Regine Panknin
Corporate communications, Forschungszentrum Jülich
Tel.: +49 2461 61-9054
E-Mail: r.panknin@fz-juelich.de

Last Modified: 22.05.2022