The Australian Sports Brain Bank is a medical research laboratory, a part of the neuropathology department of the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital (RPA) in Sydney. It is headed by neuropathologist Associate Professor Michael Buckland.
The bank was established in 2018 as a collaboration between RPA and Sydney University to study the relationship between concussion, head injury and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). It is a partner organisation of Concussion Legacy Foundation's (CLF) Global Brain Bank.[1] In 2019, the bank opened a branch in Melbourne in conjunction with the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine.[2]
In 2020, the bank identified CTE in the brain of Australian rules football hall of fame member Polly Farmer.[3] Jacinda Barclay was the first contact sportswoman in Australia to donate her brain to the Australian Sports Brain Bank. Barclay was found dead at her Perth home on 12 October 2020. Her death was implied to have been a suicide.[4][5] In 2021 researchers uncovered neurological degradation to her cerebral white matter, similar to that found in the brains of American footballers. Damage of this type is thought to be the result of repetitive head injury from contact sports and is linked to an increased risk of suicide.[6][7] In 2023 researchers from the bank posthumously diagnosed Heather Anderson with CTE. She is the first female athlete diagnosed with this disease.[8]
Other athletes who have pledged to donate their brain to the bank include boxer Jeff Fenech, National Football League player Colin Scotts, Australian Football League players Daniel Chick and Sam Blease and National Rugby League players Ian Roberts and Shaun Valentine.[1][9]
^ abHan, Esther (26 March 2018). "Australia's first sports brain bank launched to find head injury and disease link". Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Ltd. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
^"Sports Brain Bank for Victoria". La Trobe University. 19 June 2019. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
^Carlisle, Wendy; Colangelo, Anthony (26 February 2020). "CTE discovered in Polly Farmer's brain in AFL-first". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
^Valencich, Glenn (13 October 2020). "Sporting world rocked by shock death of AFLW player aged 29". 7NEWS.com.au. Archived from the original on 15 October 2020. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
^Riordan, Joey (14 October 2020). "'Demons none of us knew': Friends open up on 29-year-old's shock death". 7NEWS.com.au. Archived from the original on 16 October 2020. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
^Convery, Stephanie (29 April 2021). "Damage found after late AFLW player Jacinda Barclay donates brain for concussion research". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 29 April 2021. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
^McIntire, Kayla L.; Crawford, Kelly M.; Perrin, Paul B.; Sestak, Jordan L.; Aman, Kyle; Walter, Lauren A.; Page, David B.; Wen, Huacong; Randolph, Brittney O.; Brunner, Robert C.; Novack, Tom L. (18 January 2021). "Factors Increasing Risk of Suicide after Traumatic Brain Injury: A State-of-the-Science Review of Military and Civilian Studies". Brain Injury. 35 (2): 151–163. doi:10.1080/02699052.2020.1861656. ISSN 0269-9052. PMID 33460350 – via Taylor & Francis online.
^Davey, Melissa (4 July 2023). "Australian footballer Heather Anderson first case of CTE in a female athlete diagnosed by researchers" – via The Guardian.
^Proszenko, Adrian (4 December 2019). "Fenech pledges brain to science for concussion research". Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Ltd. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
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