AI Maps the Brain in New Detail

FEATURED RESEARCH

A Six-Year AI Project Just Created the Most Detailed Brain Atlas Ever Used in Living Humans

A lot of brain research hits the same issues where MRI scans are safe for living humans, but they can’t see the brain’s fine structure. Microscopy can, but only after death.

That gap has limited how early we can detect diseases like Alzheimer’s, where tiny sub-regions of the hippocampus deteriorate long before memory fails.

A new study published in Nature finally bridges that gap with an AI-assisted brain atlas that captures the brain’s microscopic detail and maps it onto everyday MRI scans.

A six-year effort: Researchers at University College London spent six years building this atlas, called NextBrain, by dissecting five donated human brains into 10,000 tissue slices each, staining and photographing every piece under a microscope, and then reconstructing them into fully digital 3D models.

Before any slicing began, each brain was scanned with MRI so the team could “reassemble” the pieces later.

AI did the alignment work by matching microscopic images to MRI scans, correcting distortions, and ensuring the 3D models had no gaps or overlaps.

The team then labeled 333 brain regions across all five brains. Done manually, they estimate this would have taken decades.

What this unlocks: NextBrain can analyze MRI scans of living people in minutes and identify brain structures at a level of detail that was not possible before.

It performed well across thousands of MRI datasets, even on ultra-high-resolution scans that had been manually labeled by experts.

The atlas also detected subtle age-related changes in more than 3,000 MRI scans, revealing patterns existing tools would have missed, including differences in specific subregions of the hippocampus.

Why it matters: Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases begin long before symptoms.

A tool that can consistently identify tiny regions affected early in disease could reshape diagnosis, monitoring, and research. And because NextBrain is openly available through FreeSurfer, labs worldwide can use it immediately!

If this holds up in clinical studies, we may be closer to detecting brain disease not when it becomes obvious but when it becomes preventable.

For more details: Full Article 

Brain Booster

Select the right answer! (See explanation below and source)

What Caught My Eye

AI HEALTH THERAPIST

Mental Health Apps Have Operated Unchecked for Years. The FDA Is Finally Tightening the Rules

AI therapists are getting closer to real clinical use, but mental health apps still live in one of the biggest regulatory gaps in digital health. More than 10,000 mental-health apps are on the market, yet almost none are reviewed by the FDA.

This matters because 57.8 million U.S. adults have a diagnosed mental illness, and many turn to these tools with no guarantee of evidence, safety, or accuracy.

That’s the backdrop for the FDA’s new draft guidance on “AI therapists,” its term for patient-facing generative-AI tools that deliver therapy or support diagnosis. No such systems are authorized yet, but the agency knows they’re coming fast and that the current landscape is too inconsistent to leave unchecked.

The FDA wants real proof: clinically meaningful endpoints, human oversight, clear labeling, and ongoing monitoring for hallucinations, drift, and unsafe recommendations.

Even a future AI therapy moving from prescription-only to over-the-counter would face stricter evidence demands.

The message is direct. Mental-health AI is changing from “use at your own risk” to a world where claims MUST be backed by data.

For a field built on trust, that change can’t come soon enough!

For more details: Full Article

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📢 Other Happenings in Healthcare AI

• China has mandated nationwide AI clinical assistance across all stages of care by 2030, starting with data infrastructure and AI rollout in clinics by 2027 to standardize diagnostics, prescriptions, and patient management. [Link]

• Vice ran a piece on four patients who followed chatbot advice straight into the emergency room, including chemical injuries and delayed care. [Link]

• Perimetrics' FDA-cleared InnerView is a breakthrough AI diagnostic that detects internal tooth issues early, setting a new global standard in preventive dental care. [Link]

Have a Great Weekend!

Trivia Answer: C) Cerebellum

It might be surprising, but the cerebellum, often associated mainly with balance and coordination, actually houses more than half of all neurons in the brain! This compact region is densely packed with neurons, highlighting its crucial role in processing complex motor and possibly cognitive tasks. [Source]