Singapore brain bank receives first donations of brains for research

Dr Joan Sim freezes brain specimens at the Brain Bank Singapore. - ST/ANN

SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN): The one-year-old Brain Bank Singapore (BBS) welcomed its first two "deposits" this year, with the first of two brains donated on Sept 10.

Retrieving the brain is no mean feat. The body's powerhouse, which weighs 1.2kg on average, has to be carefully -- and very respectfully -- removed from the back or the top of the head of the dead person. This needs to be done within 24 to 48 hours to preserve the quality of the brain tissues, and the process takes around an hour.