Virtual brains and detailed microcircuit models are changing neuroscience; yet, the elusive multiscale model of the human brain still escapes us. A new approach that goes beyond the standard top-down versus bottom-up dichotomy is not only possible, but necessary, argue Egidio D’Angelo and Viktor Jirsa. In a recent review article published in Trends in Neuroscience, the HBP researchers are proposing to build an array of plug-and-play tools to bring together worlds of neuroscience previously separated.

Researchers of the Human Brain Project (HBP) have identified seven new areas of the human insular cortex, a region of the brain that is involved in a wide variety of functions, including self-awareness, cognition, motor control, sensory and emotional processing. All newly detected areas are now available as 3D probability maps in the Julich Brain Atlas, and can be openly accessed via the HBP’s EBRAINS infrastructure. Their findings, published in NeuroImage, provide new insights into the structural organisation of this complex and multifunctional region of the human neocortex. 

Right before the summer break the HBP Student Ambassadors and the EBRAINS Scientific Liaison Unit organised together with the HBP Education Programme the interactive workshop “Young Researchers using EBRAINS for tomorrow's scientific challenges”. During the event participants were given a platform to share their ideas for workflows on the EBRAINS Infrastructure and learn together with their peers how to conceptualize their research ideas and record them in a comprehensive workflow.

Scientists of the Human Brain Project (HBP) have used simulation tools to uncover molecular mechanisms of a family of enzymes that is key to processes related to brain plasticity and learning. Their results, published in WIREs Computational Molecular Science, provide insights into the dynamics between so-called adenylyl cyclase enzymes and the proteins that regulate their activity.

Whether it’s modelling or simulation, high definition images or spreadsheets, current neuroscience research generates a lot of data. But are researchers making the most of all this raw information, which often takes a lot of computational time and effort to produce? How much time and effort could be saved by reusing datasets previously produced by other researchers? This was the topic of a dedicated discussion at the 2022 FENS forum, where experts in the field of neuroscience data pointed out that very few laboratories are effectively sharing and reusing data.

Attendees at the FENS Forum 2022 had the chance to learn how EBRAINS research infrastructure is supporting the future of brain science in Europe during a dedicated networking event this Monday, July 11.

The advances in the fields of artificial intelligence bring out a series of ethical issues, including those related to the impact of new technologies on society. The collaboration between neuroethics and artificial intelligence ethics to address these issues was the subject of a special lecture by Arleen Salles, Deputy Leader of the Responsible Research and Innovation Work Package at the Human Brain Project (HBP), during the FENS Forum 2022.