Raine Study Researchers

For Researchers

A rich resource for researchers

The Raine Study is one of the most comprehensive pregnancy birth cohort studies in the world. It is a rich resource for the study of environmental and genetic factors that affect health and development and can provide unique insights into the natural history of human diseases.

Between May 1989 and November 1991, 2900 pregnant women were recruited into the study and their children have been assessed intensively over the past three decades. Prospective longitudinal data has been collected at multiple time-points since pregnancy and through infancy, childhood, adolescence and young adulthood. The Raine Study now exists as a source of broad multidisciplinary data on physical, mental and social aspects of development.

The main cohort (Gen2) are now on average 33 years of age and maintain a keen sense of commitment to the Raine Study. Their data has been genotyped and data linkage with other publicly held datasets (e.g. school results and hospital records) is available. There are stored biological samples and established collaborative research networks across a wide variety of disciplines.

Multigenerational lifecourse study

The Raine Study is now a multigenerational lifecourse study addressing a broad range of health and developmental issues in four generations. In addition to the original cohort (Gen2), their parents (Gen1) participated in assessments, providing information about their children and about themselves. Gen1 has recently participated in assessments of sleep, obesity and activity. In addition, the offspring (Gen3) of the original cohort (Gen2) is currently participating in assessments of developmental ability and physical activity. We have also conducted a study involving  Grandparents (Gen0).

Current areas of research

There are currently more than 150 researchers utilising the Raine Study. The investigators bring expertise from 25 broad areas of research including; asthma and atopy, cardiovascular and metabolic heath, childhood developmental growth, dental health, diabetes, genetic epidemiology, gastro-enterology, infection and immunity, mental health, musculoskeletal development, nutrition, physical activity, ophthalmology, pregnancy and birth, reproductive health, sleep and risk taking behaviour. Find out more about the work being done by Raine Study researchers on our Special Interests Groups page.

Researchers from the Raine Study collaborate extensively on a national and international basis. These collaborations add value to the cohort and expand future research and funding opportunities.

Future opportunities

The Generations follow-up commenced in April 2023, and is anticipated to run for at least 3 years. This follow-up involves both Gen1 (parents of those born into the study) and Gen2 (the original children born into the study from 1989-1992) participants. In March 2023 we were pleased to announce that we have received funding to commence recruiting Generation 3 participants (the offspring of our Gen2 participants) to be part of the Generations follow-up.

The future success of the Raine Study is vital as it is now clear that both genes and the environment of mother, baby, child and adolescent are key contributors to diseases and conditions in later life that account for approximately one third of the global burden of disease, in both developed and developing countries. This prospectively collected extensive data resource can assist in unraveling the complex interaction of multiple factors in the pathways to health and disease over the full course of human life.

Working with the Raine Study

The Raine Study is a supported-access resource and enquiries are encouraged from researchers who wish to utilise data. Collaboration with existing Raine Study researchers is encouraged and facilitated by the Raine Study Management.

Every new project application goes through a review and approval process that takes on average 6-8 weeks. A project application is first reviewed by the Scientific Management Committee (SMC), which meets on the first and third Wednesday of every month. Following SMC review, the project application is then reviewed by the Scientific Review Committee (SRC), which meets face-to-face once a quarter, with electronic meetings in between as needed.

The process of working with the study is as follows:

For new project applications, we suggest researchers contact the Scientific Management Committee to have an informal discussion about their project idea. The Committee can suggest potential collaborators and advise on relevant considerations, such as data access fees, need for a biosample request, and overlaps with previously approved projects.  You can email the Scientific Manager.

Some funding bodies require an expression of interest (EoI) as the first step in a grant/fellowship application. Commonly, an EoI comprises a short summary of the project idea and precedes a full application. Researchers planning to submit a grant/fellowship EoI that proposes the use of Raine Study data should contact the Raine Study Scientific Manager or Scientific Director and discuss the project idea as part of the pre-application process. If the researcher successfully moves into the full grant/fellowship application stage, a project application needs to be submitted in ROSS. The full grant/fellowship application can only be submitted to the funding body after being approved by the Raine Study.

The Lead Investigator will submit a Project application via the Raine Online Submission System (ROSS). On ROSS, the project is only formally submitted after each member of the project team confirms their involvement and acknowledge our code of conduct. Once submitted, the application is reviewed during our fortnightly Scientific Management Committee (SMC) meeting. The SMC will discuss the project and then either place the item on the next Scientific Review Committee (SRC) meeting agenda or contact the Lead Investigator to suggest revisions. The SRC will then discuss the project and either approve, request revisions/amendments or reject it. The SRC meets face to face quarterly and electronically in between the face to face meetings. Please allow a period of 6-8 weeks from the formal submission of the project application to final approval.

Projects can only commence once they have received final approval by the Scientific Review Committee and have all required ethics approvals. Every new project proposing to use existing data and/or biosamples or to collect new data and/or biosamples from the Raine Study participants must have its own Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) approval from a HREC that is registered with the NHMRC. For more information regarding the ethics approval process for projects using the Raine Study resources please refer to the Commonly Used Resources page and FAQ.

For projects involving the use of existing data and/or biosamples, once final approval by the Scientific Review Committee and from a HREC is obtained, the Lead Investigator will submit a data access request and/or biosamples request via ROSS. On ROSS, the data access request is only formally submitted after each listed data handler confirms their involvement and acknowledge our data access code of conduct. Once submitted, the data access request is reviewed during our fortnightly SMC meeting and the SMC will either approve, request revisions/amendments or reject it. If approved, the Raine Study Data and Biosamples Manager will arrange data extraction and secure transfer to the data handlers. Please note the time for data extraction varies according to the amount and type of data requested.

For projects involving the collection of new data and/or biosamples in Raine Study participants, once final approval by the Scientific Review Committee and from a HREC is obtained, the Lead Investigator will work with the Raine Study team to conduct data collection.

This part of the process has two key steps: manuscript submission and media release/engagement.

In the project application, the research team provides information regarding proposed manuscripts to be completed. For an approved project, once researchers prepare a full manuscript that is almost ready for submission to a peer-reviewed journal, they must submit the draft manuscript to ROSS using the MS Form. The SMC will then review and approve or advise revisions/amendments are required. Following MS approval, the research team can submit the manuscript to a journal.

Please note manuscripts must not be submitted to a journal prior to the Raine Study approval. Manuscripts will be checked for similarity/plagiarism, potential negative impact on the cohort, and appropriate nomenclature and acknowledgements.

If the team wishes to promote their research through the media, they should contact the Raine Study Communications Manager, who will liaise with the research team and their institutional media team as required and approve any media releases related to the Raine Study.

Raine Online Submission System (ROSS)

ROSS has been designed to provide an efficient project management process and all researchers who would like to use Raine Study data must submit a project application via ROSS. Researchers who would like to get involved in the Raine Study must submit their application via ROSS.

If you do not have a ROSS account, please email the Raine Study.

If you already have an account, please access ROSS here.

Study Registration

The Raine Study is registered in the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry.
Trial ID: ACTRN12617001599369.

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