This project will investigate whether someone’s religious/spiritual beliefs and behaviors (RSBB) influences protein levels of individuals and their offspring. It will be hypothesis driven, so we will look at all relevant RSBB-linked questions from ALSPAC questionnaires as possible exposures. We will also investigate whether attending a faith school (G1) is associated with protein levels at age 9 and 24. Furthermore, we will also explore whether intergenerational shifts in terms of people gaining/losing faith in ALSPAC have any effect on protein levels; and similarly, whether discordance between parents’ RSBB affects offspring protein levels.
The outcomes are the 92 proteins analysed by Olink, plus the inflammatory biomarkers Glycoprotein acetyls (GlycA) and C-reactive protein (CRP) which were measured previously in ALSPAC. We will also look at the ratio of IL-10 to IL-6, since it has been highlighted as an inflammation biomarker connected with spiritual activation. As a validation exercise, we will also include IL-6 measured by clinical chemistry, to compare with results from IL-6 measured by Olink. The ALSPAC proteomic data includes approximately 3000 samples from each of three age groups: the mothers from the 1st Focus on Mothers clinic (FOM1) and the children at ages 9 and 24, with a significant sample overlap between the three groups.