At the HUNT Center for Molecular and Clinical Epidemiology (HUNT MCE) we use population studies to investigate how biology, lifestyle, and environment affect health and disease development. An overarching goal is to develop better prevention and treatment strategies. The center is multidisciplinary, and we use research methods within genetic, molecular, and clinical epidemiology to study a wide range of disease and health conditions.

The center is based on the Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT), where the population of Nord-Trøndelag has contributed health information since the 1980s. HUNT includes questionnaire data, clinical measurements, and biological analyses such as genotyping, metabolomics, proteomics, and microbiome analyses. This rich dataset, combined with information from hospitals and health registries, provides unique opportunities to study health and disease development. A particular advantage of HUNT is the very long follow-up period, which allows us to study health and disease development throughout the lifecourse and across generations.

HUNT MCE is part of the Department of Public Health and Nursing at NTNU and was established in 2023 as an extension of the K.G. Jebsen Center for Genetic Epidemiology (2016-23). The Unit for Method Support and Data Analysis has been part of HUNT MCE since 2024. This unit offers project support to clinical researchers at St. Olavs Hospital and other hospitals in Central Norway.