Scientific Concept of the National Cohort (status ... - Nationale Kohorte

Project title Main objectives
Significance of fat distribution and
mitochondrial dysfunction for
aging processes (magnetic
resonance spectroscopy, MRS)
Assessment of zoonotic
infections for chronic disease risk
Access to detailed data on
occupational history
Use of bracelet dosimeters for
assessment of natural radiation
exposure
Estimation of cumulative ionizing
radiation through medical
exposures
§ funded by BMBF grant
A.3.4 Assessments through medical imaging
A.3.4.1 rationale
103
A.3 Study design
Development of optimized SOPs for phenotyping of subgroups in
multicenter studies (ectopic lipids, energy metabolism) using MRI and
MRS (1H, 31P MRS); Development of standardized processes to
analyze raw data and set up databases for rapid access to data of
selected groups of patients of different study centers.
The ability of the pet owners to obtain nasal swabs and stool samples
from their cats or dogs, and their willingness to have a veterinarian
draw blood from their pets will be tested in a feasibility study.
Evaluation of the procedure of data linkage for a detailed occupational
history retrieved from secondary data sources (IAB Database of the
Institute for Employment Research, Federal Employment Agency).
Evaluation of the use of bracelet dosimeteres to measure natural
background radiation in an epidemiological study; Testing of feasibility
and acceptance by the study subjects.
Evaluation of the feasiblity of the use of data from health insurance
companies (in combination with questionnaire data from the study
participant) to get information on the type and frequency of applied
diagnostic and therapeutic devices using ionizing radiation for the
assessment of cumulative medical exposure.
Biomedical imaging has become paramount for the early detection and diagnosis of various
disease states and is also increasingly being used in nonclinical settings for research purposes
to provide comprehensive phenotyping of the human body in its various physiological
and (pre-)pathological states. This rapid development has been fostered by continuous
technological advances which have made it possible to perform imaging examinations noninvasively
at very high spatial and temporal resolution, providing morphologic and functional
information of the highest detail. Moreover, labor-intensive, complex imaging procedures
such as MRI protocols have been established for acquiring highly standardized images
in heterogeneous (patient) populations, thus forming the methodological prerequisites for
population-based imaging.
In the National Cohort, a comprehensive whole-body MRI protocol will be implemented in a
subcohort of 40,000 study participants, so as to complement the biochemical and genetic
phenotyping by detailing various morphologic and functional biomarkers for cross-sectional
and longitudinal analysis. This section delineates the scientific background and objectives
for this highly innovative study component and presents the study logistics.
A.3.4.2 Background
In contrast to many other imaging modalities, MRI permits comprehensive and simultaneous
imaging of multiple organ systems using highly standardized acquisition protocols. Today,
MRI is the technique of choice for highly sensitive and specific detection of many different
A.3