Our Platform

A first-of-its-kind solution for discovery and sharing of data and biosamples

EPND brings together existing studies and initiatives from public and private sectors in a scalable and sustainable platform, providing a single point of access for data and biosample sharing, discovery, and analysis.

Four key components of establishing the platform

The EPND platform is built on four major components to provide a complete, secure system for data and biosample storage and analysis.

Establishing a single trusted source and repository

EPND provides a central user interface to facilitate the discovery, sharing, and analysis of data and biosamples from neurodegenerative disease research studies across Europe.

Common data standards to drive interoperability

EPND evaluates existing data harmonisation, governance, and sharing processes to support interoperability between datasets.

Cultivating shared practices

EPND builds a culture of best practices surrounding collection, storage, and biosample management through the platform.

Facilitating discovery, collaboration, and analysis

The EPND platform enables users to contribute and discover datasets and resources, find and request access to biosamples, identify collaborators, and access tools and resources for analysis.

Discover the enhanced EPND Catalogue

We’re regularly improving and expanding the content and capabilities of the EPND Catalogue to increase the visibility and discoverability of studies, enabling new pathways for collaborative research and sharing biosamples and data.

Recent updates to the EPND Catalogue include:

Improved search and filter functions with a streamlined interface, allowing researchers to discover and connect with studies of interest easily.
Additional categories of information and metadata on study design, participants, datasets and biosample collections, and their use and access conditions.
An expanded catalogue of more than 75 neurodegenerative disease research studies from 17+ countries covering 13 disease areas with more than 240,000 research participants.

Explore the EPND Catalogue

Timeline: The 5-year plan to bring EPND to reality

The EPND Consortium partners built the platform and established a collaborative network in several stages:

Join us on the journey

November 2021:

EPND program established

Formal funding and endorsement of EPND Consortium
October 2022:

EPND Cohort Catalogue launched

Online catalogue with searchable metadata of 60+ neurodegenerative cohorts
January 2023:

Data Protection Impact Assessment completed

Assessment of GDPR risks, identifying privacy safeguards to ensure responsible data management
April 2023:

Biobanking and biomarker SOPs published

Standard Operating Procedures for biobanking, biomarker validation and biosample collection
July 2023:

Establishment of Stakeholder Advisory Framework

Launch of Expert Groups and External Advisory Board for multi-stakeholder engagement with EPND
November 2023:

Cohorts discoverable at resource level

Users can search and request access across datasets from cohorts made available through EPND partners
March 2024:

Enhanced features added to the EPND Catalogue

New search and filter functions, additional categories of information and metadata, and an expanded catalogue of studies

Harnessing the power of the Alzheimer's Disease Data Initiative

The Alzheimer's Disease Data Initiative's AD Workbench provides infrastructure for free data sharing, data science tools, and global collaboration opportunities to accelerate neurodegenerative disease research. The AD Workbench powers EPND’s platform, creating a community of practice to connect neurodegenerative disease research in Europe and contributing to the collective goal of advancing scientific breakthroughs and accelerating progress.

Joining forces with a powerful tool for researchers

The AD Workbench facilitates research and sharing on Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. Users can search, analyse, and manage existing datasets, save their work, upload and share new datasets and code, and allocate their workload to a virtual machine.

Establishing infrastructure to support quality data sharing

Researchers and the medical community need the best information possible to forge a new path for neurodegenerative disease research. EPND implements FAIR data practices based on principles of findability, accessibility, interoperability, and reusability. FAIR practices are utilised across every part of the initiative and support the discovery of datasets via the AD Workbench’s FAIR search functionality.

Learn more about the Alzheimer's Disease Data Initiative