A brain imaging database of rare and endangered Australian mammals

A brain imaging database of rare and endangered Australian mammals.

This project will implement the concept of a comprehensive national brain and skull image database of extant and extinct Australian native mammals and birds. Eventually this national e-Research collection is expected to include high quality data of brains from most of Australia’s unique fauna and will allow data-mining for qualitative and quantitative comparisons across multiple species and exemplars.

Start date 3 June 2019

Expected completion date 21 October 2019

Investment by ARDC $49,999

Co-investment partners

University of New South Wales

National Imaging Facility

Taronga Zoo Conservation Society

Australian Museum Sydney

Atlas of Living Australia

Lead node

1 Metadata framework

Implementation of a metadata framework for the specific needs of volumetric brain in animal specimens.

2 Database

Implementation of a database for brains and skulls of a sub-collection of Australian endemic species.

3 Specification document for metadata

Specification document for metadata to describe imaging data of animal brain and skull specimens, specifically data descriptors for complex MRI datasets.

4 POC database

Extensible POC database with fully curated and metadata furnished MRI and CT data of brain and skull specimens from rare and endangered Australian animals.

5 Completion of project

Project outcomes will be presented at an ARDC Data and Services Summit in October 2019.