About 100 brains stored in jars of formaldehyde have gone missing from the University of Texas in Austin.
It is unknown who took the brains and whether it is a case of theft or a prank, according to CBS News.
The other 100 brains in the university’s collection have been moved to a different building, where they are being scanned with resonance imaging equipment.
The collection of brains arrived at the University of Texas 28 years ago from the Austin State Hospital. The psychology lab could only hold half of the collection. The other half was stored in the university's Animal Resources Center, from where it went missing.
“It’s entirely possible word got around among undergraduates and people started swiping them for living rooms or Halloween pranks,” co-curator of the brain collection and psychology professor Lawrence Cormack told the Austin American-Statesman.
A statement from the university said: “We are committed to treating the brain specimens with respect and are disheartened to learn that some of them may be unaccounted for.”
“The university plans to investigate the circumstances surrounding this collection since it came here nearly 30 years ago.”