Proposal summaries
B4342 - Ultra-processed food consumption and risk of overweight and obesity in children - 05/06/2023
Globally, increasing prevalence of obesity has been observed, not just amongst adults but also in children. Studies have suggested that early development of obesity in childhood is associated with obesity in adulthood and development of chronic illnesses. It is thus important that factors associated with the rising prevalence of obesity amongst children are investigated, so that early interventions can be put in place to address the issue. While the causes contributing to obesity are complex, healthy eating is one of the most important and modifiable risk factors to address this issue. Traditionally, studies have been conducted to understand specific food group or nutrient and the association with obesity. However, in recent decades, food systems have undergone major changes that have led to a rising availability of ultra-processed foods globally. Under the NOVA food processing classification, ultra-processed foods are defined as industrial products made with many ingredients not accessible in domestic kitchen and typically contain a myriad of artificial additives. While there are growing evidence that the consumption of ultra-processed foods are linked to obesity in adults, this has not been examined in children except for few cohort studies with short follow up time. Therefore, this project aims to investigate the link between childhood consumption of ultra-processed foods and the development of overweight and obesity from childhood to early adulthood in the ALSPAC birth cohort. The results of this study will address an important gap in literature and also provide valuable insights to help shape future policies in tackling childhood obesity.
B4337 - Predicting Language Development at the Individual Level - 06/06/2023
Research using data from the AVON Study has found developmental stability of language development (Bornstein et al., 2018, Science Advances). Children whose language ability ranks low at 6 months are likely to continue to rank low when they are 15 years old. The results are group-level results revealing group tendencies, rather than pinpointing whether a particular infant will likely to develop better or poorer language in later childhood. We would like to examine whether a more precise analytical approach can be adopted so that we will be in a better position to forecast language development at the individual-child level.
B4338 - Early life social connections and adiposity Exploring the underlying biosocial mechanisms - 02/06/2023
Obesity is a significant challenge for individuals, societies, and economies. Whilst behaviours involved in energy balance, such as physical activity and diet, have been a primary focus of obesity research, several psychosocial factors have also shown promising associations. Social connections (such as social support and social networks) are known to be linked to disease and mortality in later life. Research has shown associations between social connections and a reduced risk of obesity, yet there is little known about these associations in earlier life stages including childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood. Taking a lifecourse perspective has the potential to reset health and social trajectories by encouraging a proactive preventative approach, rather than a reactive treatment approach. The specific roles and relative contributions of the different social connection dimensions (structural, functional, and quality) are also unclear, meaning the optimum ways to intervene are unknown.
Understanding the underlying biosocial mechanisms linking social connections to health is important as it can help establish causality and suggest novel interventions. Stress and inflammatory response systems have been individually associated with both social connections and obesity but have not been studied in this relationship. Ultimately, this project aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the relationship between early life social connections and obesity across the early lifecourse, including the exploration of the potential underlying biological mechanisms.
B4323 - Combining polygenic risk scores to optimize prediction of alcohol problems - 31/05/2023
Problematic alcohol use is a major public health burden. It is important to understand how to best predict individuals most at risk for alcohol problems so they can be targeted for early prevention efforts. This project will explore whether combining polygenic risk scores can enhance the prediction of alcohol problems.
B4330 - Genetic basis of DNA methylation GODMC2 - 21/08/2023
DNA methylation (DNAm) plays a central role in gene regulation. It helps to define how cells respond to environmental signals
and, ultimately, contributes to health or susceptibility to disease. DNAm variation is influenced by genetic, molecular and environmental and other factors. However, the amount and the effects of differences in DNAm from one person to another is
poorly understood.
A powerful avenue into researching the functional consequences of changes in DNAm levels is to correlate DNA sequence variants such as single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) to DNAm levels to find both local and distal (for example on
other chromosomes) effects. Having completed the largest genetic study of DNAm worldwide to date (through the Genetics of DNA Methylation Consortium) by scanning 10 million SNPs genomewide, we have identified 270k SNP-DNAm associations. This was achieved by analysing about 400,000 DNAm sites in blood, which is only 2% of 28 million DNAm sites across the genome. There is a huge potential for improved understanding of DNAm variation between individuals and its influence on health and disease by studying other regulatory regions of the genome using EPIC arrays, by using cell type interactions and other gene-environmental interactions and by using different types of statistical tests
B4335 - The role of religious beliefs in adult mental health - 24/05/2023
Most research has found a positive association between religious belief and mental health, but these are often in US samples, which may differ from samples in other countries. We have previously examined childhood and adolescent mental health and parental religious belief, which have found results that differ from much of the previous literature. This study seeks to expand upon our previous studies of childhood and adolescent mental health by examining adult mental health, and whether offspring religious belief is associated with it in a large UK cohort study.
B4327 - Improving speech outcomes in preterm children - 24/05/2023
This project will investigate how speech sounds develop in the first 8 years of life in children born prematurely. Preterm children are at increased risk of impaired neurodevelopment, which can include problems with acquisition of speech and speech disorder. Speech sound disorder can impact their learning, mental health, and life chances in adulthood. This study will provide information on how prematurity impacts speech development and how this compares with full-term children. This will help health professionals in the early identification and intervention of preterm children requiring support.
The study comprises five workstreams. 1) a full systematic review of the literature to determine the characteristics associated with speech sound development in preterm children; 2) examination of data from the ALSPAC dataset to explore the characteristics and outcomes of speech development in preterm children in the first 8 years of life compared with full term children; 3) examination of data from the National Neonatal Audit Programme (NNAP) to explore how the degree of prematurity impacts speech development in preterm children; 4) collection of new data from a clinical sample of preterm children recruited from NHS neonatal services in Bristol and Cardiff; 5) a UK-wide online survey will determine the role of Speech and Language Therapists in NHS neurodevelopmental assessments for preterm children in the first 3 years of life.
B4328 - Depression and hypertension comorbidity sleep as a potential mediator - 24/05/2023
Depression and hypertension commonly co-occur. This comorbidity may be explained by HPA axis dysregulation which has associations with both hypertension and depression. Additionally, sleep problems are a known cause of HPA axis dysregulation, therefore, sleep may serve as a transdiagnositic marker, and potentailly intervention point, for both disorders. This research will focus on childhood and adolescence as previous research has only examined this relationships in adults, despite these conditions being prevalent in younger groups. Additionally, adulthood is a time when these conditions are already well-established. Through examining a younger sample, we can study the directionality and mediation of this relationship at a time when both conditions start to emerge.
B4329 - Identifying Genetic and Non-Genetic Factors that Influence Age at Menarche - 24/05/2023
This projects seeks to deepen our understanding of how the timing of puberty affects adult health outcomes, specifically, risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The age at which a girl gets her first menstrual period (age at menarche, or AAM) has a peculiar relationship with CVD: both earlier and later AAM are associated with increased risk of CVD in adulthood.
In preliminary work focusing on later AAM, we applied human genetic techniques to distinguish the effects of common genetic changes on AAM from the effects of other, yet-to-be-identified factors. We were surprised to find that the relationship between later AAM and CVD depends on the underlying cause of later AAM. If caused by common genetic changes, later AAM is actually associated with _lower_ risk of cardiovascular disease. In contrast, if caused by other factors, later AAM is associated with _increased_ risk of cardiovascular disease.
The broad goals of this project are 1) to better understand how common genetic changes affect AAM by subgrouping common genetic variants based on their effects on childhood factors known to affect AAM, and 2) to identify factors other than common genetic changes that influence AAM.
B4339 - Camouflaging across neurodevelopmental conditions and the general population - 14/07/2023
In recent years there has been increasing interest in the phenomenon of camouflaging (hiding or compensating for neurodivergent traits), particularly within autistic populations. Camouflaging is understood to be associated with poorer mental health in these populations. The most common method of measuring camouflaging is through a brief self-report measure. However, there have been no unselected population-based studies which measure camouflaging, and therefore we do not know whether, and to what degree, camouflaging is unique to neurodivergent populations and whether it is associated with poorer mental health outcomes across the general population. This project aims to assess the prevalence of camouflaging across the general population for the first time, and to compare between typically developing individuals and those with neurodevelopmental and mental health conditions.
B4333 - The association between maternal-related diseases and neurodevelopmental disorders in offspring an ALSPAC database study - 31/05/2023
Maternal-related diseases affect the development of offspring nervous system. However, there are currently some limitations in the research on this topic, such as small sample sizes, short observation periods, lack of long-term follow-up, unconsidered confounding factors and interactions, etc. To overcome these limitations, our study plans to use the large-scale population cohort data in ALSPAC, adopt advanced statistical methods and causal inference methods, systematically analyze the strength of the association and causal effects of maternal-related diseases between neurodevelopmental disorders in offspring, and explore possible mechanisms and intervention measures.
B4332 - Economic Determinants of Mental Health - 31/05/2023
Mental health problems are globally prevalent, and made worse by Covid-19. There is a growing recognition of the roles of economic circumstances in determining mental health, however, it remains unclear how the economic circumstances at various levels (individual and household; local areas; and national) manifest differently on mental health through different channels. Based on ALSPAC data merged with local authority level information, and cutting-edge econometric methods, we will systematically examine the extensive links between mental health and economic circumstances at individual/household, local area, and national policy levels, and map out a complete and comprehensive picture of economic determinants of mental health. Our research will get to the economic roots of mental health and help answer the long-term big-picture question of how to prevent mental illness. Our research is novel on two fronts. First, we bring together economic data at micro, local, and macro levels from multiple sources to study their roles on mental health in one setting; second, we take advantage of rich and long panel data and dynamic panel modelling methods to examine dynamic and long-run effects over the life course.
B4324 - From adolescence eating behaviors and dieting to adulthood adiposity and food preferences - 15/05/2023
Adolescents are more likely to become dissatisfied with their body as they could be more easily influenced by their peers and media and internalize bodily norms. In order to alter their body, adolescents may use several strategies such as restrained eating or dieting. Eating restraint and dieting during adolescence could interfere with physical growth and cognitive development, predispose them to weight gain, prompt disinhibited eating, and increase risk of severe eating disorders. Furthermore, health-related habits such as dieting and eating behaviors tend to persist into adulthood.
There is a gap in research about the associations between a combination of different dimensions of eating behaviors in adolescence and health behaviors in adulthood. This research aims to address this gap by studying how adolescents with distinct profile of eating behavior dimensions, including restrained eating and uncontrolled eating, differ from each other during their adulthood in terms of body composition and food preferences. Findings could assist in identifying adolescents at higher risk of obesity and less healthy food choices with regards to dimensions of eating behavior.
B4320 - The Genetics of Laterality- Causes and Consequences - 17/05/2023
Handedness refers to the preferential use of one hand over the other. Conversely, ambidexterity refers to the ability to perform the same action equally well with both hands. Hand preference is first observed during gestation as embryos begin to exhibit single arm movements. Across the life span, the consistent use of one hand leads to alterations in the macromorphology and micromorphology of bone, which results in enduring asymmetries in bone form and density. At the neurological level, handedness is associated with the lateralization of language (the side of the brain involved in language) and other cognitive effects. The prevalence of left-handedness in modern western cultures is approximately 9% and is greater in males than females. While handedness is conceptually simple, its aetiology and whether it is related to brain and visceral (internal organ) asymmetry is unclear.
Using data from the UK Biobank, 23andMe and the International Handedness Consortium, we recently conducted the world’s largest genetic study of handedness in over 1.7 million individuals (Cuellar-Partida et al 2020). We found 41 genetic loci associated with left-handedness and 7 associated with ambidexterity (P < 5 × 10−8). We would now like to take this work forward and use the ALSPAC resource to investigate the relationship between these genetic variants and other measures of laterality including footedness and ocular dominance. We will perform latent class analyses of handedness, footedness and ocular dominance and examine how these latent classes relate to known genetic variation for handedness, as well as how the latent classes and handedness variants relate to early life physical and cognitive measures.
B4315 - The Developmental Impacts of Trauma on Alcohol Use and Mental Health Symptoms A Genetically-Informed Approach - 31/05/2023
Trauma is a transdiagnostic risk factor for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), major depressive disorder (MDD), increased alcohol use, and alcohol use disorder. Additionally, these conditions tend to co-occur, and are genetically-influenced. Decades of work has emphasized the importance of count, type, and timing of traumatic events on these mental health outcomes. However, most work has not examined these mental health conditions simultaneously and very few have investigated their effects over the course of development. This proposed study will examine the role of trauma characteristics on these outcomes across childhood into adulthood, via the use of multiple longitudinal datasets--ALSPAC, as well as two others (Add Health, a nationally representative sample, and ABCD, a diverse sample of children aged 9-10 across the US). This study will also use cutting edge genetic methods (genomic structural equation modeling-derived polygenic risk scores/PRSs) to examine the genetic influences on these conditions, as well as investigate potential interactions between genetic risk and trauma characteristics.
B4306 - Reproductive factors and the risk of pregnancy complications - 09/05/2023
The reproductive factors including lifestyle, disease status, infection, medication use, nutrient supplements, physical activity, and mental health are associated with pregnancy complications. The adverse outcomes of pregnancy confront the world as a major challenge, with extensive impact on individuals, families, and societies at large. This study will take advantage of the data provided by the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children to quantify the risk of possible adverse outcomes of pregnancy, and present opportunities to reduce the burden associated with congenital disorders at a population level.
B4321 - The role of mental health and well-being in the transition to parenthood - 09/05/2023
Becoming a parent is an important life event that has a significant impact on the way that we live our lives.
This project will look at how having a child impacts new parents’ mental health and well-being, by using information about ALSPAC participants before they have had children, and seeing how this changes afterwards.
This will help us to understand which parts of our well-being are affected by having children, when this happens, and why different people react differently to becoming parents.
By understanding the experiences of new parents better, we can work towards interventions that support parents’ well-being at this important time of their lives.
B4322 - Placental methylation - pilot study - 15/05/2023
We aim to investigate whether it is possible to obtain methylation data on the stored G0 placentas.
B4319 - Adverse Childhood Experiences and Gambling - 04/05/2023
Gambling disorder (persistent/recurrent gambling) can be harmful to health/social wellbeing. Previous research suggests that stressful life events, such as child maltreatment increase likelihood of gambling disorder. However, these studies rely on young adults remembering if stressful life events that happened long ago, rather than asking about these events close to when they happened. We also do not know much about the influence of other types of Adverse Childhood Experiences (e.g. parental mental health problems). We plan to look at the influence of a range of Adverse Childhood Experiences on gambling disorder, using data that have followed individuals up regularly since birth until their 30's.
B4284 - Normative modelling of brain structure in subjects with subclinical psychotic symptoms - 03/05/2023
Our proposal will exploit longitudinal neuroimaging to evaluate how brain maturation is linked with subclinical psychotic experiences. We have recently developed a method that allows us to identify abnormal maturational trajectories by computing brain centiles (analogous to pediatric growth charts). Applying this methodology to neuroimaging data from individuals with varying levels of psychosis will provide a more complete picture of how this condition progresses in the context of a normative population. Using ALSPAC data from subjects with psychotic experiences will enable us to study how early brain alterations are linked with an initial set of subclinical symptoms and will shed light on how these structural alterations compare to those seen in clinically diagnosed psychotic disorders in the context of a large-scale, multi-study framework.