The PDS Tissue Bank at Imperial aims to help understand what causes Parkinson's and assist in the development of better drug treatments by providing high quality brain tissue to researchers working in the field of Parkinson's and related neurological disorders. The Tissue Bank also aims to enhance the public's awareness of Parkinson's, promote the work of the Tissue Bank and increase the numbers of volunteers who are willing to sign up to the donor scheme. The Tissue Bank also aims to collect the tissue so that it is suitable for all research needs and that it is collected in the most ethical manner.

Two years of growth and development

The Parkinson’s Disease Society (PDS) is delighted with the progress that has been made in developing the PDS Tissue Bank at Imperial College in the 2 years since the PDS Tissue Bank opened its doors. It is clear that firm foundations have been laid to run an extremely efficient Tissue Bank, to provide tissue for research to laboratories in the UK and around the world and to support Parkinson’s research programmes undertaken at Imperial College itself.

The PDS provides support for the Tissue Bank as a major investment in the research infrastructure in the UK. Donated tissue both from people with Parkinson’s and from those without a neurological condition (known as ‘control’ tissue) is a vital resource to researchers seeking solutions to Parkinson’s disease. In looking at the progress being made, some highlights are set out below.

Donors – making the vital gift
The Society is very grateful indeed to all those who have made the decision to donate brain tissue for research. The average number of donors making this commitment each month has almost doubled in 2004 compared with 2003 and the number of 'controls' has also increased significantly.

Reaching out widely to prospective Donors
We are very pleased with the efforts the Tissue Bank staff continue to make to travel across the UK to speak to PDS branches and to young people’s groups to promote the Tissue Bank as widely as possible. The enthusiasm and commitment of the Imperial team underpin the growth and development of the Tissue Bank.

The Management Board
We put in place the Management Board to strengthen governance and to oversee at a strategic level the operation and development of the Tissue Bank. The Society is very grateful to the members of the Management Board who very kindly give their time and expertise without charge. Under the guidance of Professor Paul Ince as Chairman, the Management Board membership draws on wide ranging expertise including a person with Parkinson's, a carer, a Nurse Specialist and an external tissue user.

External Links
The PDS is very encouraged by the links between the PDS Tissue Bank at Imperial and the Queen Square Brain Bank at the Institute of Neurology. We now have clear website links between the two banks and an external researcher seeking tissue will easily be able to access both tissue banks. We are also pleased that the Director of the Queen Square Brain Bank has joined our Management Board – all evidence of the determination to come together to defeat Parkinson’s.

The Team at Imperial

The progress being made certainly reflects the excellent contribution made by the team at the Tissue Bank. The senior members of the team at Imperial have been able to draw on the expertise and experience of Professor Richard Reynolds gained from running the Multiple Sclerosis Tissue Bank. The overall lead for the Tissue Bank is provided by Dr David Dexter as Scientific Director and Dr Ronald Pearce as Clinical Director while Dr Kirstin Goldring manages all aspects of the day to day operations. Dr Ronald Pearce acts as Clinical Director and Professor Manuel Graeber completes the senior team and is in charge of the diagnostic work and leads an associated programme. Our thanks are given to all those who have helped in any way to support and develop the Tissue Bank.