A new edition of the Understanding Society nurse collected health assessment data has been released, which includes new proteomics panels and epigenetic clocks.
The Understanding Society Wave 2 Nurse Health Assessment, conducted in 2010-2012, was completed with 15,646 adult participants from the General Population Sample living in England, Scotland or Wales. In this wave, blood samples were obtained from 9,920 individuals. The Wave 3 Nurse Health Assessment was conducted in 2011-2012 and added in the BHPS sample participants. In this wave assessments were conducted with 5,053 individuals and blood samples were obtained from 3,366 individuals. The Nurse Health Assessment included physical measures, such as height, weight, lung function, blood pressure and grip strength, as well as a range of blood samples. The new edition is available to download from the UK Data Service.
Proteomic data, polygenic scores and epigenetic clocks
As well as a range of blood analytes, two new proteomic panels have been produced and a number of epigenetics clock variables have been derived. Polygenic scores are also available in the Special Licence version of this dataset.
Proteomic data
For the proteomic data, 184 proteins were measured in 6,180 adults. These proteins focus on cardiometabolic health and neurological processes. The proteins in the cardiometabolic panel are known to be involved in processes related to cardiovascular health (i.e. of the heart and blood vessels) and metabolism (i.e. the processing of molecules such as nutrients and drugs). It is anticipated that the cardiometabolic panel proteins in this dataset will provide further insights into the pathways to, and points of intervention, for cardiovascular disease. Many of the proteins for the neurology panel are well-known to have roles directly related to the health and disease of the nervous system, while others may be more indirectly related. You can find descriptions of all the proteins in these panels in the proteomic data user guide.
Read the Proteomics User Guide
Epigenetic clocks
Epigenetic clocks, constructed based on CpG sites whose DNA methylation levels are associated to chronological age or age-related health outcomes, have attracted a lot of research interest for their potential to quantify rates of biological ageing. The difference between a person’s chronological age and epigenetic age calculated by these ‘clocks’ has been used as an indicator of whether an individual is aging faster or slower biologically than expected, given their actual age. Differences between actual age and biological age may be related to life circumstances and environment. For the Understanding Society data, five epigenetic clocks have been constructed. You can read more about the epigenetic clocks in the user guide.
Read the Epigenetics Clocks User Guide
Polygenic score
A polygenic score is a continuous variable that reflects an individual’s propensity towards a given trait. These traits can include disease status, behaviours, and blood levels of biomolecules, among many others. A number of polygenic score variables have been derived from the genomic dataset and are available for the first time in the Special Licence version of the Nurse Assessment dataset (SN 7587). Polygenic scores generated in Understanding Society can be used as explanatory variables in a range of analyses, including investigating the causal effect of the polygenic score trait with health or social outcomes. However, any findings from analyses that use polygenic scores as explanatory variables require careful interpretation. Please consult the User Guide for information on using these data appropriately.
Read the Polygenic Scores User Guide
Biomarkers, genetics and epigeneticsHealth and wellbeing
