Seetha Sreekumar

ADBS

Mental illnesses include well-recognized conditions such as schizophrenia, depression, bipolar disorder, addiction and dementia. Changes in the structure and function of the brain that result in mental illness are poorly understood. Neither do we understand why some individuals are more prone to developing mental illness than others. Understanding these underlying changes in the brain will likely lead to better methods to diagnose and treat mental illness. The Accelerator program for Discovery in Brain disorders using Stem cells (ADBS) is a new scientific venture to understand mental illness by harnessing the power of sophisticated clinical investigations, modern human genetics, and stem cell technology. ADBS was launched in 2016 under the joint stewardship of three institutions from Bangalore, India – the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), the Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine (inStem) and the National Institute for Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS). The ADBS program is supported by the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science & Technology, Government of India and the Pratiksha Trust.