World’s Largest Human Imaging Study Opens the Door for a Better Understanding of Diseases

Study in a Sentence: UK Biobank, one of the world’s most comprehensive datasets of human biological and health information, has scanned the bodies of 100,000 people, a notable landmark of an 11-year project.

Healthy for Humans: The UK Biobank’s biological samples and health data were gathered from more than 500,000 middle-aged volunteers who have completed physical tests, provided DNA and other samples, and answered health and lifestyle questionnaires. 100,000 of these volunteers also provided more than one billion scans. By combing these scans and the initial data collected, scientists can better understand how organs change and how diseases, including dementia and heart disease, develop.

Redefining Research: The global availability of data at the UK Biobank has already resulted in more than 1,300 peer-reviewed papers with results showing improved patient care. While animal experimentation is fraught with scientific and ethical problems, human-based methodologies, including advanced imaging, allow researchers to see inside the human body and learn more about diseases at multiple stages without the use of animals.