Research Questions
Which modifiable lifestyle factors and biological markers are causally associated with the onset and progression of major chronic diseases such as cancers, gastrointestinal inflammatory disorders, and metabolic conditions?
Can integrated, high-accuracy prediction models that combine genetic, lifestyle, clinical, and imaging information improve early risk stratification for these diseases?
Do different chronic complex diseases-such as digestive-system cancers and gastrointestinal inflammatory disorders-share common genetic drivers that contribute to disease comorbidity and overlapping mechanisms?
Aims
(1) identify lifestyle and biochemical factors with potential causal roles; (2) develop comprehensive, individualized frameworks for early risk prediction and prevention; and (3) characterize the common genetic and molecular basis underlying multimorbidity.
Scientific Rationale
Current research on chronic complex diseases faces three fundamental challenges: confounding in causal inference, insufficient performance of personalized prediction models, and a limited understanding of the mechanisms underlying multimorbidity. This project addresses these critical unmet scientific needs through an integrated strategy combining mechanism elucidation, risk prediction, and cross-disease association. The UK Biobank provides an unparalleled multimodal platform-incorporating genetic, biochemical, imaging, and health record data-to overcome these methodological limitations. Its large-scale genetic resources enable robust causal assessment of modifiable exposures, while advanced machine learning algorithms will be used to develop integrated predictive models that outperform conventional clinical risk factors, enabling truly high-precision early risk stratification. Furthermore, the comprehensive nature of the data allows for systematic investigation of shared genetic architecture and pleiotropic pathways across chronic diseases.
