Modifiable and genetic determinants could jointly influence the onset and development of cardiovascular and digestive diseases, as well as multimorbidity. However, research in this domain remains nascent. We aim to:
(1) identify modifiable risk factors and unrecognized biomarkers to elucidate their direct effects and potential moderating functions on gastro-cardiovascular disorders and co-morbidities;
(2) infer potential causal associations between different variables and gastro-cardiovascular disorders and co-morbidities;
(3) unravel genetic variants and candidate genes associated with higher disease susceptibility, and the level of proteins, metabolites and gene expression;
(4) discover potential genetic correlations between gastro-cardiovascular disorders and co-morbidities;
(5) provide mechanistic insight into how candidate genes exert their effects on disease development;
(6) identify potential molecular targets for drug repurposing.
(7) construct robust prognostic algorithms to predict the probability of disease onset, disease progression, life expectancy and incidence of other health-related endpoints for the early detection of high-risk populations.
Scientific rationale: Prospective cohorts yield extensive data for disease analysis and prevention. Genomic studies pinpoint disease-associated genetic variants and genes. Statistical and machine learning models enable risk factor screening, mediation analysis, effect size estimation, causal inference, and personal risk scoring. Single-cell RNA-seq integration reveals gene roles in disease pathology, informing modeling and drug targets. Transcriptome-wide association study elucidates gene expression regulation in diseases.