Our Platform

Designing a technical solution for data sharing and discovery

EPND will create and maintain a platform where researchers can discover, analyse, and visualise neurodegenerative disease data they would have otherwise been unable to access.

Four key components of establishing the platform

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

Establishing a single trusted source and repository

EPND will create and govern a central location for accessing, storing, and analysing neurodegenerative disease data.

Common data standards to drive interoperability

EPND will evaluate existing data sharing and harmonisation processes to ensure interoperability between datasets.

Developing common practices

EPND will cultivate a culture of best practices surrounding collection, storage, and sample management within the platform.

Facilitating discovery, collaboration, and analysis

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

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

The EPND Consortium partners will build and establish the platform network over the next five years in several stages:

Join us on the journey.

July 2022:

EPND node available on the ADDI AD Workbench

Users can join the EPND network, and EPND can begin to receive data for indexing and discovery.
November 2022:

Access to partner catalogues available

Users can make online queries and request access to samples and data.
November 2022:

Publication of FAIR implementation paper

EPND will publish our plan for FAIR data management, based on principles of findability, accessibility, interoperability, and reusability.
November 2023:

Cohorts discoverable via the AD Workbench

Users can search and request access to datasets from cohorts made available through EPND partners.
April 2025:

Data discoverable with analytical capabilities

Users can access cohort and sample data for in-platform workspace-based analysis. Additionally, the record-level data of at least 20 cohorts from the catalogue will be linked to the discovery tool.
November 2025:

EPND cohorts and biorepositories connected and discoverable

EPND users can search and request access to all available datasets for analysis.

Harnessing the power of the Alzheimer's Disease Data Initiative

Publicly launched in 2020, the Alzheimer’s Disease Data Initiative’s AD Workbench is a platform that provides infrastructure for free data sharing, data science tools, and global collaboration opportunities for the acceleration of neurodegenerative disease research. EPND will function as the European node within this global data sharing community, 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. The initiative is guided by three main principles: increasing data sharing, easing data access, and developing new tools and analytics for researchers to use and share. 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 — capabilities that will all be made available to the EPND network.

Establishing infrastructure to support quality data sharing

To forge a new path for neurodegenerative disease research, researchers and the medical community will need the best information possible. That’s why EPND will implement FAIR data practices, based on principles of findability, accessibility, interoperability, and reusability. FAIR practices will be adopted across every part of the initiative and will support discovery of datasets via the AD Workbench’s Fair Search functionality.

Learn more about ADDI