UK Biobank data open

The UK Biobank data was officially opened to researchers on March 30 Through this database, scientists around the world can use all kinds of health data of nearly 500000 British people for research, which undoubtedly plays a positive role in promoting global medical research The UK Biobank project was officially launched in August 2006 to collect a large number of biological samples and medical data for medical research Data collection targets British people aged 40 to 65, including height, weight, body fat, hand grip strength, bone density, lung function, blood pressure, as well as the medical records and lifestyle of volunteers, and even their memory, diet, early life conditions and social psychological events (such as how long to visit their family and friends) are recorded The latest data of 100000 volunteers also include hearing and vision After nearly five years of information collection, the amount of data in the UK Biobank is up to 20 trillion bytes, which is equivalent to the storage capacity of 30000 CDs With the development of time, the amount of data in the biological database will become larger and larger If one fifth of volunteers' special image scanning information is added to the database according to the plan, the amount of information in the whole database will increase tenfold These data will be open to scientists from the UK and overseas, who can apply for the use of database resources as long as their research is health-related and in the public interest Scientists and the public can look up the information summary on the Internet, and the applicants will be examined and approved by the special biobank staff after applying online The information of applicants who are allowed to use the database resources will also be published on the Internet if they are allowed Professor Rory Collins, chair of the UK Biobank project, said it was an exciting day for medical research, not just for the UK, but for the world It is hoped that these resources can be widely used for the benefit of human health and well-being.