Is Generation Scotland like UK Biobank?
As well as Generation Scotland, there is a project underway called the UK Biobank. UK Biobank is funded by the Department of Health, the Medical Research Council, the Wellcome Trust, and the Scottish Executive. It aims to collect DNA and health information on 500,000 volunteers across the UK, aged 40 to 69. Unlike Generation Scotland, the UK Biobank will not be family based. The main aim of UK Biobank is to research the interaction between inherited (genetic) factors and lifestyle (environmental) factors. This will help to measure the relative importance of “nature” and “nurture” in the development of illness. Generation Scotland’s main aim is to discover the genes connected with illness, and UK Biobank will measure the importance of these. Generation Scotland and the UK Biobank are therefore complementary, and will work closely with each other.
