Researchers from the Center for Brain and Health at NYU Abu Dhabi’s Research Institute, in collaboration with United Arab Emirates University, have released a new brain health dataset to support research in the UAE and the wider Middle East and North Africa region. The initiative addresses a longstanding gap in large, controlled neuroimaging data from the region.
Published in Nature - Scientific Data, the research introduces the ASPIRE Research Institute Brain Health Dataset, a long-term initiative that will recruit 2,000 participants, including 1,000 Emirati citizens and 1,000 non-Emirati residents aged 18 to 60. The publication documents the study protocol and makes neuroimaging and behavioral data from the first 41 participants publicly available, alongside detailed documentation and preprocessing workflows to support reuse by the research community.
Since its founding in 1971, the UAE has seen rapid population growth, urbanization, and increased life expectancy, alongside a rise in conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, which affect brain health. Despite these changes, the UAE and the wider MENA region have lacked large, controlled normative neuroimaging datasets to support research in this area.
“This dataset lays the groundwork for understanding brain health in the UAE using high-quality, openly shared data. By making the data and study methods accessible, we aim to enable collaboration and support reproducible brain health research.”
The dataset includes MRI and behavioral measures, with standardized data acquisition and processing protocols designed to ensure consistency and long-term usability.
The ASPIRE Research Institute Brain Health Project continues to expand as participant recruitment progresses, supporting long-term research efforts focused on brain health in the UAE and beyond. This study has been supported by the NYUAD Research Institute.