A boost for brain research on the horizon

New Zealand has just joined the European Partnership for Brain Health, a 10-year collaboration with 55 partner institutions from 30 countries, with a planned budget of €500 million ($NZ981.8 million).

University of Auckland Associate Professor Justin Dean is New Zealand’s co-lead on the partnership, sharing the role with University of Otago Professor Louise Parr-Brownlie.

The partnership is co-funded by the European Commission through Horizon Europe and is one of the biggest brain research collaborations worldwide.

The New Zealand Ministry of Health has contributed $500,000 for the partnership, so brain scientists here can access that level of funding, says Dean, who is Head of Department of Physiology and works with the Centre for Brain Research at the University of Auckland.

The partnership will give New Zealand scientists the chance to take part in international research collaborations focused on the detection, prevention and treatment of brain diseases, neurological disorders and mental health conditions in people of all ages.

“It will open new opportunities for New Zealand brain researchers to get involved in large international studies.

“New Zealand is highly regarded in neuroscience, but the more we can get involved in these global initiatives, the better it's going to be for our researchers and for the health of patients.

“We will be more visible on an international stage and there will be an opportunity for research focused on New Zealand populations,” says Dean.

Researchers will have more opportunities to travel overseas to collaborate, sharing their expertise and bringing new skills back to Aotearoa, he says.

“The partnership as a whole has enormous potential to uncover new understandings of brain diseases and improve detection. It could help in developing new treatments, new policy, and better medical practice.

“Working together internationally raises our chances of making real gains to improve brain health,” he says.

Parr-Brownlie says the partnership is important because it gives New Zealand a say in the research questions that will be tackled by brain scientists across Europe and further afield.

Centre for Brain Research Director Professor Hanneke Hulst says it’s great to see brain health being made a shared global priority.

“With populations ageing, brain health will become more and more important.

“Scientists need to collaborate as a global community to work towards solutions – and that’s the strength of this partnership,” Hulst says.