Collaboration & Innovation Current Projects

People living with severe mental health conditions often face complex challenges, not only related to their mental health, but also to their physical health and long-term quality of life. Mental health conditions are closely linked with the body’s biology. These links run both ways: mental illness can affect the body, and the mental health can be shaped by genes, physical health, and the lasting effects of life experiences on mind and body. 

To understand these connections, we need large studies that measure biological markers (biomarkers) – such as proteins, metabolic markers, and genes – alongside information about people’s health and experiences. 

This project will bring together researchers across the UK to collect and study blood samples from people with severe mental illness, including depression, bipolar disorder, psychosis, and complex emotions, and from people without these conditions. We will measure a wide range of biological features and link them to detailed information on mental health symptoms, life experiences, and physical health. By using the same methods in five UK research hubs, we will create a powerful collection of data including a diverse range of participants. This will allow future researchers to explore many questions, for example, how blood-based patterns relate to symptoms, recovery, or treatment response, and why some people with mental illness also develop other health problems. 

People with lived experience of mental illness are helping to shape the project at every stage, from how samples are collected to how the data will be used. The result will be a unique UK resource that will support research for many years to come. We hope it will lead to a better understanding of mental illness, the discovery of new treatments, and more personalised care for those affected.

People with severe mental illnesses (SMI), such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, face profound health inequalities, dying on average 15 to 20 years earlier than the general population. The primary cause of this gap is avoidable inequalities in society, meaning the conditions people are born, grow, live, work and age which accumulate over a lifetime (referred to as the "exposome"). This unequal distribution of social determinants of health, such as deprivation, loneliness, childhood experiences, discrimination which drives inequalities in physical and mental health although mechanisms are complex and inter-related.

The Core Problem

The grant addresses the critical link between social circumstances and poor physical health in individuals with SMI. These stressors can cause chronic physiological changes, making individuals more vulnerable to conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity.

Why Current Data Falls Short

Current large-scale health studies often overlook or inconsistently measure these vital social factors in people with SMI, leading to crucial gaps in our knowledge. This makes it difficult for researchers and policymakers to develop targeted prevention strategies.

Our Project Goals and Impact

This innovative project aims to tackle these issues head-on by:

• Harmonizing Data: Creating a platform-wide consensus and a catalogue of discoverable, interactive, and customizable social stress measures in Mental Health Platform and other SMI cohorts “exposome tables”.
• Uncovering Mechanisms: Use this enhanced data to understand which social stress factor(s) drive biggest health disparities, providing actionable targets for new interventions and preventative measures.
• Driving Policy Change: Involving individuals with lived experience at every stage to ensure the findings inform clinical practice and policy, ultimately closing the decades-long life expectancy gap for people with severe mental illness.

By understanding the full picture of their physical and social environments, we can move beyond simply treating symptoms and focus on preventing illness, leading to healthier, longer lives for a highly vulnerable population.