UK Biobank
UK Biobank is a long-term study of the impact of lifestyle, environment and genes on older people’s health. It will involve more than half a million volunteers from around the UK. Researchers will study diseases such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer’s within this group, with the aim of developing new ways of diagnosing, treating and preventing the conditions.
The project is funded by the MRC, the Department of Health, the Wellcome Trust and the Scottish Executive.
Background
Scientists have known for many years that our risk of developing different diseases is influenced by our genetic make-up, our lifestyle, and the environment in which we live and work. UK Biobank aims to find out more about how these factors combine to determine our state of health.
Over the next 30 years, UK Biobank will study 500,000 volunteers aged 40–69 from all around the UK. By studying such a large group of people, many of whom may suffer a disease during the next few decades, the project will show more reliably than ever before why some people develop certain diseases. The results will help scientists to find new ways to prevent death and disability from many different conditions, including cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes and dementia.
How the study is run
At the end of 2006 the UK Biobank study enters its main phase, during which the research team will begin to recruit the 500,000 volunteers. They will identify people of 40–69 years of age on NHS registers, and then invite them to take part. Everyone who says yes will be asked to donate samples for DNA analysis, including blood and urine. They will also have some standard health measurements taken – such as for blood pressure – and be asked to complete a confidential lifestyle questionnaire.
Over the next 20 to 30 years, UK Biobank will track the volunteers’ health, recording illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease. By linking this information to the volunteers’ genetic makeup and lifestyle profiles, researchers hope to develop new and better ways of preventing, diagnosing and treating these conditions.
Consent and confidentiality
The data and samples that are collected will only be used for ethically and scientifically approved research. The project has an ethics and governance framework to ensure the highest ethical standards regarding volunteer consent, confidentiality and data security. This framework has been developed in consultation with experts in research ethics, philosophy, law, biomedical and social science, and representatives of the general public. An independent council oversees its implementation.
Building on pioneering genetic research
The UK Biobank project is one of the largest of its kind in the world. It would not have been possible without the pioneering work in human genetics carried out by MRC scientists over many decades. This began with the discovery of the structure of DNA in 1953, which transformed our understanding of human diseases and treatments and triggered the development of new DNA technologies with enormous economic and health benefits.
In 2003, a vast international team of scientists, including MRC researchers, established the DNA sequence of the human genome. Now, the UK Biobank is applying this groundbreaking scientific knowledge to find out whether, and how, genes, in association with lifestyle and environmental factors, contribute to a range of serious human diseases.