Successful Pioneering Work: Scientific Expert Report on the European Flagship Human Brain Project Presented
The European Commission has published the expert report on the Human Brain Project (HBP). The EU flagship initiative for researching the human brain concluded in 2023 after ten years. The expert report was prepared by a panel of independent scientists, who concluded that the HBP made significant contributions and had a lasting impact on brain research. The panel also praised the creation of EBRAINS, an open digital infrastructure that continues to advance neuroscience research. (Source: Forschungszentrum Jülich – Press Releases)
The HBP successfully fostered better connections between the specialized fields within neuroscience and strengthened ties with adjacent areas such as medicine, computer science, and computing. Ultimately, this led to the emergence of a “new paradigm of digital neuroscience” as well as a “new interdisciplinary culture of collaboration,” which continues to have an impact, according to the expert report.
The report highlights key scientific achievements of the project, including digital brain atlases, new detailed brain models and simulations, innovative solutions for personalized medicine, neurorobotics, and artificial intelligence. Significant progress in neuromorphic computing was made using the open platforms SpiNNaker and BrainScaleS, paving the way for energy-efficient computing inspired by the brain.
In his foreword, Roberto Viola, Director-General of DG Connect at the European Commission, emphasizes the “remarkable advances in developing new approaches for diagnosing and treating neurological diseases” that were made possible through the flagship project: “Thanks to its algorithms for brain simulation and modeling, the HBP pioneered early and precise diagnosis of brain disorders and the development of personalized therapeutic strategies.” This is particularly relevant for conditions such as epilepsy.
“It was our vision to leverage the new opportunities of the digital age for collaboration across borders, to analyze and model complex interrelationships, and to harness these for neuroscience, thereby having a lasting impact on research. I am glad that we succeeded, and that this success is recognized externally as well,” says Katrin Amunts. A brain researcher, she served as Scientific Director of the Human Brain Project from 2016 to 2023 and is now Co-CEO of EBRAINS. “The success of the HBP was only possible due to the work of so many colleagues across Europe over the years.”
With EBRAINS into the Future of Neuroscience
In their summary, the reviewers attribute a “key role” to the digital research infrastructure EBRAINS in a future European partnership in the field of Brain Health and in the new domain of digital brain research. This is further supported by the joint position paper of over 100 scientists on the future development of digital brain research over the next ten years, which was published in April.
FZJ/A. Stettien, 02.10.2024
Note: The article has been translated from German to English. It is based on a press release from FZJ.
The original press release can be found at:
Erfolgreiche Pionierarbeit: Wissenschaftlicher Expertenbericht zum europäischen Flaggschiff Human Brain Project vorgestellt (only in german)
Localization in Helmholtz Information:
Helmholtz Information, Program 2: Natural, Artificial and Cognitive Information Processing, Topic 5: Decoding Brain Organization and Dysfunction
Contact:
Prof. Dr. Katrin Amunts
Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM)
Structural and Functional Organisation of the Brain (INM-1)
Forschungszentrum Jülich
Phone: +49 2461/61-4300
E-Mail: k.amunts@fz-juelich.de
Peter Zekert
Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM)
Structural and Functional Organisation of the Brain (INM-1)
Forschungszentrum Jülich
Phone: +49 2461 61 96860
E-Mail: p.zekert@fz-juelich.de
Contact for this press release:
Dipl. Biol. Annette Stettien
Head of External Communication
Forschungszentrum Jülich
Phone: +49 2461 61-2388
E-Mail: a.stettien@fz-juelich.de
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