Normative Neuroimaging Library: Designing a Comprehensive and Demographically Diverse Dataset of Healthy Controls to...

Area of Science:

• Neuroimaging
• Neurology
• Biomedical Informatics

Background:

• Neuroimaging has advanced from qualitative to quantitative outputs, enabling inference of microscopic changes and functional alterations in the brain.
• Existing and emerging neuroimaging techniques offer potential for diagnosing traumatic brain injury (TBI) and predicting outcomes for various neurological diseases.
• Clinical application of neuroimaging requires normative data across diverse demographics for accurate patient comparison.

Purpose of the Study:

• Introduce the Normative Neuroimaging Library (NNL) to the research community.
• Highlight NNL's comprehensive dataset for establishing normative standards in neuroimaging.
• Facilitate the development of diagnostics and therapeutics for TBI and other brain disorders.

Main Methods:

• Collected data from approximately 1900 healthy participants.
• Acquired comprehensive structural and functional neuroimaging data using state-of-the-art MRI sequences, preserving raw scanner data.
• Gathered detailed demographic information, medical history, and structured clinical assessments, including cognitive and psychological scales.

Main Results:

• NNL comprises data from a diverse population (civilians, veterans, active-duty service members) aged 18-64, an underrepresented group in existing datasets.
• Standardized imaging protocols across sites ensure data quality and relevance for various neurological conditions.
• The library provides a demographically diverse healthy cohort for comparison in brain injury studies and clinical samples.

Conclusions:

• NNL serves as a foundational resource for precision medicine in neurology.
• Enables the creation of imaging-derived phenotypes (IDPs) for AI-based biomarker development and normative modeling.
• Supports advanced imaging in clinical decision support tools, biomarker validation, and brain-behavior anomaly research.