DOI: 10.5255/ukda-sn-9439-1
title: 1970 British Cohort Study: Polygenic Indices, 2016-2018: Special Licence Access
title: 1970 British Cohort Study - Multi-omics Data and Risk Scores
title: BCS70

description: &lt;p&gt;The &lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;1970 British Cohort Study&lt;/span&gt; (BCS70) is a longitudinal birth cohort study, following a nationally representative sample of over 17,000 people born in England, Scotland and Wales in a single week of 1970. Cohort members have been surveyed throughout their childhood and adult lives, mapping their individual trajectories and creating a unique resource for researchers. It is one of very few longitudinal studies following people of this generation anywhere in the world.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Since 1970, cohort members have been surveyed at ages 5, 10, 16, 26, 30, 34, 38, 42, 46, and 51. Featuring a range of objective measures and rich self-reported data, BCS70 covers an incredible amount of ground and can be used in research on many topics. Evidence from BCS70 has illuminated important issues for our society across five decades. Key findings include how reading for pleasure matters for children's cognitive development, why grammar schools have not reduced social inequalities, and how childhood experiences can impact on mental health in mid-life. Every day researchers from across the scientific community are using this important study to make new connections and discoveries.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;BCS70 is run by the &lt;a href="https://cls.ucl.ac.uk/cls-studies/1970-british-cohort-study/" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"&gt;Centre for Longitudinal Studies&lt;/a&gt; (CLS), a research centre in the UCL Institute of Education, which is part of University College London. The content of BCS70 studies, including questions, topics and variables can be explored via the &lt;a href="https://discovery.closer.ac.uk/item/uk.cls.bcs70/75fe4705-0c94-4f75-b1e6-ad9c61ffde26" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"&gt;CLOSER Discovery&lt;/a&gt; website.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;em&gt;How to access genetic and/or bio-medical sample data from a range of longitudinal surveys:&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br&gt;For information on how to access biomedical data from BCS70 that are not held at the UKDS, see the &lt;a href="https://cls.ucl.ac.uk/data-access-training/genetic-data-and-biological-samples/" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"&gt;CLS Genetic data and biological samples&lt;/a&gt; webpage.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;Polygenic Indices&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br&gt;Polygenic indices are available under Special Licence SN 9439. Derived summary scores have been created that combine the estimated effects of many different genes on a specific trait or characteristic, such as a person's risk of Alzheimer's disease, asthma, substance abuse, or mental health disorders, for example. These polygenic scores can be combined with existing survey data to offer a more nuanced understanding of how cohort members' outcomes may be shaped.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;Secure Access datasets&lt;br&gt;&lt;/span&gt;Secure Access versions of BCS70 have more restrictive access conditions than versions available under the standard Safeguarded Licence.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/p&gt; 
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;SN 9439 - 1970 British Cohort Study: Polygenic Indices, 2016-2018: Special Licence Access&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br&gt;Polygenic indices (PGIs) aggregate Genome-wide Association Studies (GWAS) estimates across all measured single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to provide a single estimate of an individual’s genetic predisposition towards the trait under study. As such, SNPs can be considered as the building blocks of PGIs. It is important to note that the genetic predisposition represented by PGI is known inasmuch as it has been estimated accurately and reliably from a GWAS; not all SNPs are included in the GWAS or the GWAS estimates for a given SNP are inaccurate, then the genetic predisposition represented by the PGI will be lower than the true genetic predisposition.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The PGIs have been developed using a consistent methodology that has been applied to harmonised genetic data across each cohort, enabling researchers to engage in consistent cross-cohort analysis for using derived genetic measures for the first time. All PGIs have been derived from large scale Genome-wide Association Studies (GWAS) with publicly available summary statistics. This approach is hoped to enable and encourage wider use of the genetic data collected in these studies. High level guidance on the use and interpretation of PGIs is provided.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The PGIs were also developed in a consistent manner in a birth cohort born in 1946 (MRC National Survey of Health and Development, 1946c), which can be obtained by separate application to the Unit for Lifelong Health and Ageing at UCL.&lt;/p&gt;