Research Studies currently recruiting from the Cambridge BioResource:

"Approaches to early detection and intervention in lung disease" led by Professor Sir Bruce Ponder at the Cancer Research UK Cambridge Research Institute. This project aims to establish why some people who smoke are more likely than others to develop different types of lung disease. The study will involve looking at blood samples from smokers, ex-smokers and non-smokers to determine how different individuals respond to the damage caused to their DNA by cigarette smoke. Volunteers will be asked to provide a single small blood sample.

"Assessment of accuracy and sensitivity of genotyping technologies for determining red blood cell groups" led by Dr Nicholas Watkins at the University of Cambridge and NHS Blood and Transplant. This study aims to compare genotyping technologies with traditional serological methods for determining donor and patient blood groups. In addition to a technological comparison, the study also includes a cost-benefit analysis of the two approaches. The outcome of this study will inform the future implementation of blood group genotyping in the UK Blood Services.

"Cardiosome Project: genes and mechanisms in cardiovascular disease" led by Dr Willem Ouwehand at the University of Cambridge. The aim of the Cardiosome project is to identify the genes and mechanisms that contribute to the risk of heart attacks. Heart attacks are the leading cause of death in Western societies. The study involves donating one or several blood samples. You can view the full information sheet sent to volunteers here.

"Common copy number variants associated with obesity" led by Dr Sadaf Farooqi at the University of Cambridge Metabolic Research Laboratories. The aim of this study is to determine how certain common genetic variants in the population increase the chance of gaining weight, whilst other genetic variants seem to protect people from gaining weight. Volunteers will be asked to donate a single small blood sample for this study.

"Dopaminergic modulation of human social decision making" led by Dr Eisenegger and Dr Müller, Departments of Experimental Psychology and Psychiatry. The main purpose of this study is to gain further understanding of the brain mechanisms involved in decision making in a social context. The study aims to examine how the dopaminergic system influences decisions in healthy male volunteers. Participants will attend a single session at the Herchel Smith Building, which is in vicinity to Addenbrooke's Hospital, where they will either receive a dose of a medication that affects dopamine or an inactive 'placebo' capsule.

"Effects of Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) gene Polymorphism on Brain Imaging and Behavioural Biomarkers of Plasticity" led by Prof Pradeep Nathan of the Brain Mapping Unit, Department of Psychiatry and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Pharmaceuticals based at the GSK Clinical Unit Cambridge at Addenbrooke’s Hospital. The study aims to examine the effect of the Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) polymorphism on brain imaging, brain stimulation, electrophysiological and behavioural biomarkers of learning and plasticity in an attempt to identify biomakers that could be applied to future clinical studies of plasticity modifying drugs with a BDNF related mechanism of action. Approximately 60 subjects will undergo assessment using functional and structural brain imaging (magnetic resonance imaging), brain stimulation (transcranial magnetic stimulation), electrophysiological (Event Related Potentials), and behavioural biomarkers of learning and plasticity. The information sheet sent to volunteers can be viewed here.

"Exploring the immunobiology of human mucosal T cells in the context of IBD associated risk alleles - from genotype to phenotype" led by Dr Tim Raine in the Department of Medicine at Addenbrooke's Hospital. This study will determine how common genetic variations that have been linked to an increased risk of inflammatory bowel diseases affect the biology of the gut immune system. This approach will allow us to identify subtle but important alterations in gut immune function that will increase our understanding of the pathogenesis of these important diseases and identify novel therapeutic pathways. Volunteers will be asked to provide blood samples for analysis. Some volunteers will also be invited to provide a stool sample and to undergo a colonoscopy, which will be performed by a consultant gastroenterologist in our dedicated research endoscopy unit.

"Genes and mechanisms in type 1 diabetes" led by Professor John Todd at the University of Cambridge. The purpose of this study is to determine the functions of the genes that cause type 1 diabetes, and better understand its basic causes. This study involves donating a single small blood sample at a time and location convenient to you. You can view the full information sheet sent to volunteers here.

"Genetic and cellular mechanisms protecting from tuberculosis (TB)" led by Dr Sergey Nejentsev at the University of Cambridge. Every year TB kills more than 1 million people across the world, but an effective vaccine for TB is not available. Dr Nejentsev and his team study how the human immune system responds to the Mycobacterium tuberculosis. This study investigates why most people can contain mycobacterial infection, while others develop active TB. You can view the full information sheet sent to volunteers here.

"Genetic factors affecting leucocyte function in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)" led by Professor Tim Vyse at King's College London. Existing studies have highlighted genetic variants that are common in patients with SLE, but are also found at a lower frequency in healthy individuals. The purpose of this study is to understand how these genetic variants influence the function of white blood cells. Volunteers will be asked to provide a single blood sample.

"Genome-wide association study of genomic stability" led by Dr Jeffrey Barrett at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute. Increased miconuclei frequency in peripheral blood (a marker of DNA instability) has been demonstrated to predict cancer risk (Bonassi et al, Carcinogenesis, 2006). Little is known, however, about how individual variation in DNA sequence relates to this trait. With the additional involvement of Dr David Adams, Dr Barrett's team will analyze red blood cells from planned volunteer blood donations to measure the level of DNA instability. These measurements will then be compared to matched DNA sequence variations at a million places in the human genome to look for correlations between the genetic variation and DNA instability.

"MS Mechanisms: exploring how the predisposing genetic factors cause multiple sclerosis" led by Dr Alasdair Coles in the University of Cambridge Department of Clinical Neurosciences based at Addenbrooke's Hospital. A previous international study has identified genes potentially involved in multiple sclerosis. This study aims to investigate a number of these genes, confirming their role, defining the mechanisms involved and potentially identifying new treatment targets. Volunteers will be asked to give up to 100mls of blood. The full information sheet sent to volunteers can be viewed here.

"Time course and determinants of arterial stiffening" led by Dr Kevin O'Shaughnessy in the Department of Medicine at Addenbrooke's Hospital. As we get older our arteries stiffen. This can lead to an increase in blood pressure and greater risk of strokes and heart attacks. Dr O'Shaughnessy and his team aim to measure how quickly arteries stiffen over time and to establish the reasons why they stiffen. Volunteers will be asked to visit the Vascular Research Clinic at Addenbrooke's Hospital to undergo a number of measurements and provide a small blood sample. The full information sheet sent to volunteers can be viewed here.

Previous studies

"An fMRI study of frontal lobe function in attention" led by Dr Adrian Owen at the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit. This study used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to disassociate various mental processes, such as strategy formation and cognitive flexibility in an attempt to improve our understanding of conditions such as Parkinsons and Obsessive–compulsive disorder. This study involved performing a number of simple tasks whilst undergoing fMRI scanning and some behavioural testing outside the scanner. You can view the full information sheet sent to volunteers here and you can see more information about MRI scanning here.

"Cambridge Crohn's and colitis gene study" led by Dr Miles Parkes, Consultant Gastroenterologist at Addenbrooke's Hospital. This project aimed to identify the genes that are associated with increased risk of Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis by studying DNA and RNA both from individuals with these severe forms of bowel inflammation and from people without these diseases ('controls'). Volunteers were asked to provide a small blood sample to help with this research. You can view the full information sheet sent to volunteers here.

"Developmental origins of risk of type 2 diabetes: Tolerance of fasting and IGF-I levels" led by Professor David Dunger at the University of Cambridge Department of Paediatrics. Professor Dunger and his team are investigating whether levels of IGF-I (a metabolism hormone) in the blood are linked to differences in insulin secretion and an individual’s risk of type 2 diabetes. The study involves a period of fasting during an overnight stay at the Clinical Research Facility at Addenbrooke’s Hospital. You can view the full information sheet sent to volunteers here.

"GANDALF study: Genetic variation and altered leucocyte function in health and disease" led by Professor Ken Smith in the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research. This study aims to look at the way the immune system responds to stimuli including infectious organisms and immune complexes. In particular, Prof Ken Smith and his team will be investigating how genetic differences between individuals affect the way their white blood cells respond under a number of conditions. It is hoped that a better understanding of how genetic variation affects immune responses will lead to new ways to treat infections, transplant rejection and autoimmune disease. The full information sheet sent to volunteers can be viewed here.

"Genetic factors affecting the neural coding of emotional signals in humans" led by Dr Andy Calder at the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit. This study used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to provide a more fine-grained analysis of the particular areas of the brain that are associated with specific individual emotions in an attempt to improve our understanding of the way in which our brains process emotional information. This study involved performing a number of simple tasks, including looking at pictures of facial expressions or emotional scenes, listening to sounds, or reading emotional sentences whilst undergoing fMRI scanning and some behavioural testing outside the scanner. You can view the full information sheet sent to volunteers here and you can see more information about MRI scanning here.

“Investigation of the functional role of the IL23R gene variant in psoriasis pathogenesis” led by Professor Frank Nestle, Mary Dunhill Chair of Cutaneous Medicine and Immunotherapy at King’s College London. Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease affecting 2% of the population in the UK. In this study Prof Nestle and his team aimed to determine the effect of a genetic variant in a protein called IL-23R that is known to be important in psoriasis. This study involved donating a single small blood sample and answering to a short questionnaire. You can view the full information sheet sent to volunteers here.

"Phenotypes linked to common weight gain/diabetes genetic variants" led by Drs Savage, Farooqi, O'Rahilly, Wareham and Finucane at the University of Cambridge. The aim of this study was to improve our understanding of how genetic variants alter body weight regulation and diabetes risk. The study involved a 3-day visit to the Clinical Research Facility at Addenbrooke's Hospital. Specifically it involved measuring food intake and how much energy the body uses, under carefully controlled conditions, in order to try to identify more effective ways of preventing weight gain and reducing the incidence of diabetes. You can view the full information sheet sent to volunteers here.