We are delighted to announce that ADVANCE has received a new grant from the Headley Court Charity for analysing proteins and metabolites in ADVANCE participants’ blood samples. We will be using proteomics (protein analysis) and metabolomics (metabolite analysis) technologies to look at biochemical markers in blood to establish the molecular signatures of injury and predict its long-term evolution. For example, as a result of this work we hope to be able to predict cardiovascular and osteoarthritis risk trajectories in ADVANCE participants. Another long-term aim of the study is to identify markers of injury and any underlying predisposition to injury, as well as early predictive markers of potential complications from injury.
Through this work we hope to gain a comprehensive understanding of the relative amounts of circulating proteins and metabolites in blood among the injured and non-injured groups. The relationship between circulating proteins and metabolites and their relationship to physical and psychosocial outcomes (e.g. blood pressure, body fat, arthritis, PTSD, anxiety and depression) will be investigated in conjunction with other core ADVANCE investigations.
This work is led by Professor Marc-Emmanuel Dumas from Imperial College London. His team will be using state-of-the-art proteomics and metabolomics technologies, as well as machine learning and artificial intelligence platforms in their analyses. Prof Dumas said: ‘We are very grateful to the Headley Court Charity and the ADVANCE Charity for awarding funding for this exciting project. We now have a rare opportunity to generate and analyse huge amounts of data from the participants’ bloods. This offers a unique window into the biochemistry of the participants and could help us identify molecular signatures from injury and catch early signs of their potential adverse effects.’