Author – Ritesh Ranjan: IIT Madras – The Indian Institute of Technology Madras has achieved a major milestone in global neuroscience by releasing ANCHOR, described as the world’s most detailed 3D atlas of the human brainstem. Developed by the Sudha Gopalakrishnan Brain Centre, also known as SGBC, this breakthrough offers researchers a high-resolution, multi-modal view of the brainstem with remarkable cell-level detail.
ANCHOR stands for Atlas of Neurochemical Characterization of the human brainstem with 3D Reconstruction. The atlas maps more than 200 brainstem structures, including nuclei and fiber tracts, and provides a detailed view of how this critical region of the brain develops and changes across the human lifespan. The atlas includes data from prenatal stages, childhood and adulthood, making it a powerful resource for studying brain development, neurological diseases and clinical diagnosis.
This achievement places IIT Madras and India at the forefront of advanced brain mapping and neuroscience research.
What is ANCHOR?
ANCHOR is a digital 3D human brainstem atlas created using advanced imaging, histology, neurochemical staining and computational reconstruction. It allows researchers to study the human brainstem in extraordinary detail.
The brainstem is a small but extremely important part of the brain. It connects the brain to the spinal cord and controls several essential functions such as breathing, sleep, wakefulness, heartbeat, movement, balance and reflexes. Even minor damage to this region can cause serious neurological problems.
By creating a detailed 3D map of the brainstem, ANCHOR gives scientists and doctors a clearer understanding of its internal structure. It helps identify different cell populations and shows how various brainstem regions are organized.
Why the Brainstem Matters
The brainstem plays a central role in human survival. It controls automatic functions that the body performs without conscious effort. These include respiration, blood pressure regulation, sleep cycles, motor coordination and alertness.
Many neurological conditions are linked to changes or damage in the brainstem. These may include movement disorders, neurodegenerative diseases, brain lesions, infections and conditions affecting consciousness. Disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, dementia and rabies may also involve important changes in brainstem regions.
Until now, studying the human brainstem in such fine detail has been difficult because of its complex structure. ANCHOR changes this by giving researchers access to a precise, 3D, cell-resolution atlas that can support deeper scientific investigation.
More Than 200 Brainstem Structures Mapped
One of the most remarkable features of ANCHOR is the scale of its mapping. The atlas contains more than 200 brainstem nuclei and fiber tracts, reconstructed from hundreds of serial brain sections.
The SGBC team used eight complementary immunostains across more than 500 sections to identify different neurochemical cell types. These immunostains help distinguish specific types of cells and structures, allowing the atlas to provide more than just anatomical information. It also offers insight into the chemical and cellular identity of brainstem regions.
This makes ANCHOR one of the most comprehensive datasets ever produced for the human brainstem.
A Major Achievement by SGBC
The Sudha Gopalakrishnan Brain Centre at IIT Madras has emerged as a major interdisciplinary research platform for brain science. The centre works on transforming whole human brains into 3D cell-resolution atlases using advanced imaging and computing.
SGBC combines expertise from neuroscience, medicine, engineering, computer science and data processing. More than 200 researchers, engineers and technicians are involved in the centre’s work, along with around 20 international collaborators.
This collaborative approach has made it possible to develop a resource as complex and detailed as ANCHOR. The project also received support from several Indian medical institutions, including CMC Vellore, Kilpauk Medical College, MediScan Systems and Shri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research. These institutions helped provide brain samples across different ages and sample types, making the atlas more diverse and scientifically valuable.
Open Access for Global Researchers
A key feature of ANCHOR is that it is freely available online through anchor.humanbrain.in. This open-access model allows researchers, clinicians, students and institutions around the world to use the atlas for study and research.
Open access is important because it makes advanced neuroscience tools available beyond a single laboratory or institution. Scientists working in different parts of the world can use ANCHOR to study brainstem anatomy, compare disease-related changes and build new research models.
For students and young researchers, the atlas can also serve as a valuable educational tool. It can help them understand the structure and function of the brainstem in a more visual and interactive way.
Impact on Diagnosis and Brain Disease Research
ANCHOR has the potential to support important advances in neuromedicine. By showing the brainstem in cell-level detail, it can help researchers understand how specific cell populations are affected in neurological disorders.
For example, in diseases where breathing, sleep, movement or consciousness are affected, scientists may be able to study whether particular brainstem nuclei or pathways are damaged. This could improve understanding of disease mechanisms and support the development of better diagnostic methods.
The atlas may also help in studying brain lesions, neurodegenerative diseases, infections and developmental conditions. Over time, such detailed brain maps could contribute to improved treatment planning and precision medicine.
Launch at BRICS Neuroscience Symposium 2026
ANCHOR was released during the 3rd BRICS Neuroscience Symposium 2026 at IIT Madras. The launch took place in the presence of Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India.
Prof. Sood praised the project as a significant achievement in neurobiology. He highlighted the importance of SGBC’s platform, which brings together MRI, histology and chemo-architecture into a public digital resource.
IIT Madras Director Prof. V. Kamakoti also emphasized the importance of the initiative. He described the human brain as one of the most complex creations known to science and said that the atlas is an important step toward understanding how diseases affect the basic structure of the brain.
India’s Growing Role in Neuroscience
The release of ANCHOR strengthens India’s position in advanced neuroscience and brain research. It shows how Indian institutions can build world-class scientific tools through collaboration between government, academia, private philanthropy and medical institutions.
The project also demonstrates the power of interdisciplinary science. ANCHOR combines engineering, computing, clinical neuroscience, brain imaging and histological analysis. Such integration is essential for solving complex problems in modern medicine.
By making the atlas public, IIT Madras has not only created a research tool but also contributed to global scientific progress.
A New Era for Human Brain Mapping
ANCHOR marks the beginning of a new phase in human brainstem research. With its detailed 3D reconstruction and neurochemical characterization, the atlas gives scientists a powerful way to study one of the most important regions of the nervous system.
The atlas may help answer important questions about how the brainstem develops, how it changes with age and how it is affected by disease. It may also support future research in dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, rabies, movement disorders, sleep disorders and other neurological conditions.
With this launch, IIT Madras has set a new global benchmark in human brainstem mapping. ANCHOR is not just a scientific achievement for India; it is a valuable contribution to the world of neuroscience.
FAQs
1. What is ANCHOR launched by IIT Madras?
ANCHOR is a high-resolution 3D atlas of the human brainstem developed by the Sudha Gopalakrishnan Brain Centre at IIT Madras. It maps more than 200 brainstem structures in cell-level detail.
2. What does ANCHOR stand for?
ANCHOR stands for Atlas of Neurochemical Characterization of the human brainstem with 3D Reconstruction.
3. Why is the human brainstem important?
The brainstem controls vital functions such as breathing, sleep, wakefulness, movement, balance and reflexes. It is also linked to many neurological disorders and brain-related diseases.
4. How can researchers access ANCHOR?
ANCHOR is freely available online through anchor.humanbrain.in, allowing researchers, clinicians and students worldwide to use the atlas for study and research.
5. How can ANCHOR help medical research?
ANCHOR can help scientists study brainstem structures in detail, understand how diseases affect specific cell populations and support research in conditions such as dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, rabies, neurological lesions and movement disorders.