HEALTHY HUMAN
GLOBAL PROJECT
Hong Kong
Would you like to be part of a not-so-distant future where treatments are specifically designed for each one of us?
As recent events have shown, public health is everyone’s responsibility.
Susceptibility to infections and other diseases, their progression and severity, as well as response to medical therapies and vaccines are highly variable from one individual to another. It is crucial to assess the genetic and environmental parameters that determine a healthy immune system.
What is
HHGP - Hong Kong?
The Healthy Human Global Project - Hong Kong (HHGP - Hong Kong) is a research study aiming to define the boundaries of a healthy immune system.
The complexity of the individual immune response has precluded thus far the identification of the genetic and environmental determinants involved.
Yet, knowledge of these parameters is essential to establish personalized and precision medical care.
We are applying the technological platform of this research study to provide a personalized patient management strategy that takes into account of individual genetics, previous infection history, resident microbiota, as well as personal lifestyle and environmental factors to define immune health.
Join Us!
To help us investigating further and create the next generation of public health interventions we are calling for volunteers to participate in HHGP – Hong Kong.
Enrolment Criteria
-
Part of the FAMILY Cohort or its affiliates or Hong Kong residents
-
Aged between 20 and 79
-
Understand spoken Cantonese
& written Chinese -
Currently residing in Hong Kong, and have been for the past 12 months
-
Not currently diagnosed with cancer or having a history of cancer
-
Not currently pregnant
-
Not received any type of vaccination in the past 6 weeks
-
Not participating in another clinical study exposing to an intervention presently or three months before
The study consists of scheduled research clinic visits for eligible volunteers. Health assessments, questionnaires, and biological specimen investigations will be performed:
1st Clinical Visit
-
Health assessment
-
Medical questionnaire (in person during the visit or via Zoom prior visit)
-
Blood investigation
Tool Pick-up/ Delivery
-
Receiving stool sampling kit and wearable health device
2nd Clinical Visit
-
Health assessment
-
Lifestyle and sociodemographic questionnaire
(in person during the visit or via Zoom prior visit) -
Return of wearable health device
-
Molecular and genetic analysis of:
-
blood samples
-
nasopharyngeal samples
-
stool samples
-
hair samples
-
If interested, please contact us!
Participation Procedure
& Incentive
Assessment
& Follow-up
You may receive a follow- up referral letter for any abnormal results of selected laboratory-blood tests and physical examination by our doctor upon participating without any costs.
You can discuss these findings with your healthcare providers and decide the further actions to be taken.
All personal identifiable information obtained will remain strictly confidential.
Let's hear the feedback from our participants!
Contact us on WhatsApp: (+852) 6507 4946
This research project has been reviewed and approved by the HKU / HAHKWC Institutional Review Board.
Reference number: UW21-549
The FAMILY Cohort is a territory-wide cohort study in Hong Kong to understand the health, happiness and harmony - encompassing physical, mental and social wellbeing - of individuals and the households and neighbourhoods in which they live, in a society undergoing rapid social and economic change.
The Centre for Immunology & Infection (C2i) is the fruit of a long-standing partnership of more than 20 years between the LKS Faculty of Medicine of the University of Hong Kong (HKUMed) and the Institut Pasteur, two major institutions combining their expertise to establish this centre of excellence.
This major initiative, funded by the Innovation and Technology Commission as part of the InnoHK initiative, adopts innovative strategies to confront and mitigate the impact of emerging infectious diseases and transform Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area into a global hub of knowledge and research.
The Faculty aspires to be a global leader in teaching and learning, research and discovery, clinical service and knowledge exchange in the professional domains of medicine, nursing, public health, pharmacy, Chinese medicine and in the biomedical and social sciences that underpin these professions. At the same time, we aim to nurture outstanding students who would go on to serve the people locally, nationally and around the world, thus leading to sustainable social development through better health.
The Milieu Intérieur (MI) project, coordinated by Institut Pasteur, was established in 2011 with the aim to define the parameters that characterise a healthy immune response and its natural variation across individuals, and in doing so, inform clinical strategies for managing disease. For this, 1000 healthy volunteers (1:1 sex ratio; stratified across 5 decades of life from 20 to 69 years of age) were recruited. For each individual, a detailed eCRF of lifestyle and demographic variables, whole blood for immune phenotyping, immune stimulation and genomic analysis, as well as faecal samples and nasal swabs for metagenomic studies of microbiota, were collected. Punch skin biopsies were also taken to generate primary fibroblast lines and iPSc (from selected donors) to enable mechanistic studies. The MI project has provided a definition of protein and transcriptional immune signatures for healthy immune responses. The project also revealed new insights into the genetic and non-genetic factors driving immune response variation. In addition to key fundamental insights, the MI project has established a rich sample repository and data-warehouse, supporting ongoing integrative research in systems immunology.
The Centre for Sports and Exercise (CSE) manages the University’s sports facilities and promotes physical activity for health and wellbeing for HKU staff, students, alumni, and the wider community. The CSE operates two main sports complexes for the university which house indoor sports facilities at the Flora Ho Sports Centre on Pokfulam Road and outdoor facilities at the Stanley Ho Sports Centre in Sandy Bay. CSE also operates two other fitness facilities: ‘CSE Active’ located at the Centennial Campus and ‘HKU B-Active’ situated right next to the HKU B-1 MTR exit in Shek Tong Tsui. CSE’s overarching aim is to improve the health and wellbeing of students, staff and community of all ages and physical abilities with regards to their physical, mental, and social health whether through service programs or academic collaborations that support service. CSE is also responsible for providing support to our university athletes in their quest to strive for sporting excellence as well as good achievements at inter-university competitions.