Virtual Brain Twin

In the EU, mental disorders are a growing concern and the need for effective treatments has never been more critical. Schizophrenia, a condition that impacts 1% of the global population, shows the limitations of current therapeutic options, with 30-50% of patients experiencing inadequate responses to existing antipsychotics.

The “Virtual Brain Twin for Personalised Treatment of Psychiatric Disorders” project, initiated on 1 January 2024 and coordinated by EBRAINS AISBL, introduces an innovative approach to psychiatric care. It aims to generate virtual brain twins for psychiatric patients, through an ecosystem that utilises neuronal microcircuit simulation, mathematical analysis, innovative AI tools, and insights from psychiatric care and clinical studies. Funded by a 10 million Euro grant from the European Commission under the Horizon Health Europe Calls 2023 initiative, this open access and open-source four-year project plans to stand at the forefront of personalised medicine in psychiatry.

The goal of the Virtual Brain Twin platform is to guide clinicians in optimising medication type and dosage, and exploring alternative treatments like brain stimulation and lifestyle changes. By harnessing big data, multiscale modelling, and high-performance computing - all securely protected for data safety - this platform intends to better bridge the gap between molecules and the patient's brain.

Under the scientific direction of Prof. Viktor Jirsa, Director of the Inserm Institut de Neurosciences des Systèmes at Aix-Marseille-Université, France, and Chief Science Officer EBRAINS AISBL, the project will focus on psychosis in schizophrenia patients.

Guided by ethics requirements and embedded within the European digital neuroscience research infrastructure, EBRAINS, the Virtual Brain Twin platform aims to be initially accessible to neuroscientists, clinical researchers, and mathematical modellers. In the future, it intends to expand to clinicians and patients, with the objective to achieve better patient outcomes.