Ninety percent (90%) of brain donations organized by Brain Support Network are delivered to and stored at the Brain Bank at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida. In 2015, Brain Support Network was responsible for 16% of the brains delivered to the Mayo Clinic.
The Mayo Clinic maintains an active research program into causes of and treatments for neurological disorders including the four atypical parkinsonian disorders. This research is funded in part by the National Institutes of Health, which transfers $240M to Mayo each year. Tissue from the brain bank is also used in research conducted by other research organizations.
Dr. Dennis Dickson leads the Mayo Jacksonville Brain Bank.
Of special note is research into MSA, conducted by Dr. Phillip Low, and research into LBD and CBD, conducted by Dr. Bradley Boeve, both at the Rochester Campus of the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.
The Mayo Clinic is unusual in the speed with which it is able to complete brain autopsies and return confirmed diagnoses to the families of the donors. Neuropathology reports are returned typically within 3-4 months of death. Many other brain banks require 12-18 months to deliver autopsy results.