CHENNAI, 12 October 2026: Shri Narendra Modi, Hon’ble Prime Minister, on Sunday (11 October 2026) kicked off IIT Madras Sudha Gopalakrishnan Brain Centre’s (SGBC) mission of mapping 100+ human brains into 3D atlases at cell-resolution across human life span from foetus to old age, including brain related diseases. This will be the largest set of 3D maps of whole human brains at cell resolution.
A video on this centre can also be viewed and downloaded from the following link:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VxBhw8-vjRss-fqcT8W0jGDJKF2Rjlzp/view
The SGBC is pursuing this scientific mission through its world-class brain imaging technology platform that processes whole post-mortem human brains into cell-resolution digital 3D maps through its high throughput brain imaging and computing platform. These atlases are made publicly available through its multi-modal image visualization and computing framework, so that the benefits of this cutting-edge research can reach researchers, medical professionals, and patients all over the world.
This global mission led by SGBC is a large inter- and multi-disciplinary effort involving 200+ researchers, engineers and technicians at SGBC, 10+ medical institutions across the country, and 30+ globally leading researchers from over 10 countries.
As part of the mission, the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi released ‘C-STROKE’, the world’s first human ischemic stroke atlas developed by SGBC. C-STROKE is a landmark resource that bridges millimeter-scale pre-mortem MRI scans with micron-resolution whole-brain histology. This research is supported by Prem Watsa, Distinguished Alumnus of IIT Madras and Chairman of Fairfax Financial.
The atlas features over 1,000 annotated brain sections from a stroke-affected brain. By mapping critical cellular markers including neuronal health, neuroinflammation, blood-brain barrier disruption, hypoxia, and axonal injury, the atlas reveals for the first time the details of clinical imaging signatures at a microscopic cellular level. The 3D maps were generated using the Param Shakti supercomputer supported by MeitY. Complete with an open-access data viewer and analytical suite, the platform equips global researchers and clinicians to interrogate cerebrovascular pathology across spatial scales for discovering novel therapeutic targets directly in the human brain.
IIT Madras Distinguished Alumnus Mr. Kris Gopalakrishnan, Co-founder, Infosys, who played a key role in setting up the Centre and is a major donor to the Centre, said, “The visit of Honourable Prime Minister is a great inspiration for the scientists working on this mission. I hope this will also inspire philanthropists to support this world-class research in India which needs to scaled up.” Prof. Mohanasankar Sivaprakasam, Head of SGBC, IIT Madras, said, “It is our utmost privilege to have our PM kicking off this mission that combines brain sciences, engineering, medicine and technology. We envision that these maps and atlases will have significant implications for neurosciences and neuromedicine for decades to come.”
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