Here come the researchers!

Now that more than 2.8 million people are taking part in Our Future Health, it’s time to start highlighting the wide range of research our participants support.

Every month, we will tell you about the new studies that have been approved to access de-identified data, by our independent Access Board.

In recent weeks, 7 new studies have received approval. Here’s what they’re working on.

How hormones impact disease

Study: Understanding the role of genetics in metabolic and reproductive health in men and women
Research organisation: University of Cambridge

First out of the blocks is a study focusing on type 2 diabetes, obesity, and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), recently re-named as polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (PMOS)

All three conditions place a huge burden on people’s health. According to the NHS, more than a quarter of adults in the UK are living with obesity, a fifth have a diabetes diagnosis, while 1 in 10 women have a diagnosis of PMOS.

The study is designed to better understand how biological changes associated with aging impact our heart, reproductive and metabolic health (a measure of how the body deals with sugar, fat, and manages blood pressure).

The research team hopes to identify changes in genes that affect these aspects of health.

Identifying cardiovascular risk

Study: Understanding the cardiovascular disease cohort in the UK
Research organisation: British Heart Foundation

Every 3 minutes, someone in the UK dies from cardiovascular disease (CVD). People from certain communities are at higher risk of the disease than others.

The health insights team from the British Heart Foundation, one of Our Future Health’s charity funding partners, plans to further our understanding of how risk differs across different demographic groups. These include people from ethnic minorities and lower income households.

With more knowledge of who is at risk of CVD, work can then be done to support more targeted healthcare and ensure resources are allocated most effectively.

Study: Genetics of heart disease
Research organisation: Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT

Meanwhile, researchers in the United States are trying to develop precision preventative medication by cracking the genetic code on why some people are more susceptible to heart disease. They want to identify genes that increase risk, and to better understand why certain populations have a higher prevalence.

They hope this will be the first step in introducing preventative medication for those with the highest risk profiles.

Could obesity medication help Parkinson’s disease?

Study: Finding out which people with Parkinson’s disease are most likely to benefit from a new type of diabetes medication.
Research organisation: Imperial College

This study is exploring whether GLP-1 medications could slow down the progression of Parkinson’s disease.

Researchers will explore patterns in volunteer data to get a clearer picture of the connection between the disease and insulin resistance, which is the body’s inability to process insulin, leading to spikes in blood sugar.

If successful, the research could inform future clinical trials on the efficacy of using GLP-1 receptor agonists to treat those cases of Parkinson’s disease where there is a clear link with insulin resistance.

A unique look at health inequalities

Study: Understanding how genetics affect fairness in healthcare
Research organisation: University of Cambridge

Researchers at the University of Cambridge are exploring why certain ethnic groups are more susceptible to certain conditions, and to what extent this is down to genetics versus other drivers of disease.

The researchers use the example of type 2 diabetes, citing that people from African and South Asian ancestry are 2-3 times more likely to develop the disease.

The study will compare genetic expectation benchmarks with actual outcomes across diseases. If the observed outcomes are in line with genetic expectations, the study will make the case for clinical interventions.

But if the outcomes don’t meet expectations, the research will indicate that environmental and social factors are playing a bigger part. These can then be prioritised in future research.

Better detection equals better outcomes

Study: Understanding how genes influence osteoarthritis and complications of type 2 diabetes
Research organisation: Helmholtz Munich

Researchers in Germany have begun a two-pronged study to discover why certain people develop osteoarthritis, and which genes link to complications in type 2 diabetes.

The study will use Our Future Health’s data to compare the genes of volunteers with and without each disease, before combining the respective results with those from other large, genetic studies across the world.

Together, these two research strands aim to uncover how genetic differences influence the risk and progression of these diseases.

Creating better treatments

Study: Using genetics and healthcare data to understand disease and create innovative medicine
Research organisation: Novartis

Researchers at Novartis, an industry partner of Our Future Health, are using our diverse data to better understand what causes complex diseases, how they progress, and why they affect people differently.

The research team hopes to use these insights to develop new medicines for conditions that don’t yet have effective treatments.