Transforming Care

Barrow Neuro Analytics Center

At the Barrow Neuro Analytics Center (BNAC), our mission is to cultivate a vibrant environment for innovation, where advanced computational and statistical methods, immense computing power, and multi-disciplinary collaborations converge to harness the full potential of big data, igniting groundbreaking discoveries and advancing the frontiers of neurological science. Our work spans deep, layered investigations from population-level studies to intricate subcellular details, encompassing a diverse range of neurological diseases including stroke, traumatic brain injury, neurodegeneration (Alzheimer’s and related dementias, Parkinson’s disease, ALS), epilepsy, and malignant brain tumors. 

BNAC investigators leverage massive datasets from Medicare, global biobanks, and cohort studies to explore the connections between genetics, environment, and health outcomes, aiming to solve some of the most intractable challenges in medicine and, advance personalized care while enhancing public health strategies. BNAC was created to foster collaboration across research domains and methodologies, recognizing that researchers working in diverse areas can benefit mutually in learning from each other and advance our understanding of neurologic diseases. BNAC is also a dynamic training hub, dedicated to developing the next generation of scientists and serving as a premier destination for those passionate about using data science to advance our understanding of neurological diseases.

The Racette Laboratory uses administrative health data from Medicare and international cohort studies to understand the role of air pollution in neurodegenerative disease risk.  The Criswell Laboratory uses advanced multimodal neuroimaging to study neurodegenerative disease pathogenesis. The Phuah Laboratory combines advanced imaging techniques with genomic analysis to unravel the complex interactions between cerebrovascular disease and neurodegeneration, utilizing computational methods and machine learning on comprehensive brain imaging and omics datasets. The Geda Laboratory investigates the role of diet, exercise, and brain health on risk of Alzheimer’s disease. The Sabbagh Laboratory studies the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease using deep phenotyping and leads investigator-initiated clinical trials to identify disease-modifying therapies.