// FOR PARTICIPANTS

Getting started as a participant

Anyone can join BIOME as a participant. Create a profile, browse open studies, and apply to the ones that match your availability and interest.

Creating your profile

To participate in studies on BIOME, you first need to create a profile. Registration is done through Privy, which supports email login and cryptocurrency wallet connection.

During registration, you will:

  1. 1.Sign in with your email or wallet
  2. 2.Choose a display name and region
  3. 3.Select your role (participant, researcher, or both)
  4. 4.Accept the BIOME Platform Terms of Service

On completion, BIOME assigns you two permanent identifiers:

  • —A Participant ID in the format P-XXXX-XXXX (e.g., P-8X4M-29Q7)
  • —A Pseudonym generated from a word pair plus a number (e.g., SilentOrbit221)

These identifiers cannot be changed. They are used across the platform in place of your real name. Your identity remains anonymous to other participants and to researchers unless you choose to share additional information.

Completing your profile

Your profile is filled in progressively across four sections. Only the first section is required at registration. The remaining sections can be completed at any time, but Section 2 (demographics) must be completed before you can apply to any study.

Section 1 — Account verification (at registration)

  • —Email (verified through Privy)
  • —Phone number and verification
  • —Country

Section 2 — Demographics (required before first application)

  • —Year of birth
  • —Sex assigned at birth
  • —Gender identity (optional)
  • —Ethnicity (optional)
  • —Nationality
  • —State or region
  • —Urbanicity (urban, suburban, rural)

These fields are permanent. Once submitted, year of birth, sex assigned at birth, ethnicity, and nationality cannot be changed. You will see a warning before confirming.

Section 3 — Participation capability (optional)

  • —Smartphone OS
  • —Wearable devices (Oura, Whoop, Apple Watch, Fitbit, Garmin, or none)
  • —Internet reliability
  • —Ability to receive mail kits
  • —Sample comfort (stool, saliva, blood prick, urine, hair)
  • —Language fluency
  • —Weekly availability in hours

Section 4 — Research history (optional)

  • —Previous study participation count
  • —Recent interventions (e.g., current supplements, recent antibiotics)
  • —Washout sensitivity

Completing more sections improves your match quality for studies and increases your visibility to researchers during screening.

Your public profile

When other users see your profile, they see only:

  • —Your identicon (a geometric avatar generated from your Participant ID)
  • —Your pseudonym
  • —Your Participant ID
  • —Country and region
  • —Age range (displayed as a bracket like 25–30, not your exact year of birth)
  • —Participation stats: studies completed, completion rate, total earned, reputation badge

Your real name, email, phone number, and detailed demographic data are never visible publicly. Researchers see additional screening data only for participants who have applied to their specific study.