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Barrett ES, Ames JL, Eick SM, Peterson AK, Rivera-Núñez Z, Starling AP, Buckley JP. Advancing Understanding of Chemical Exposures and Maternal-child Health Through the U.S. Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program: A Scoping Review. Curr Environ Health Rep 2024; 11:390-403. [PMID: 38985433 PMCID: PMC11324705 DOI: 10.1007/s40572-024-00456-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/24/2024] [Indexed: 07/11/2024]
Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW Environmental chemical exposures may disrupt child development, with long-lasting health impacts. To date, U.S. studies of early environmental exposures have been limited in size and diversity, hindering power and generalizability. With harmonized data from over 60,000 participants representing 69 pregnancy cohorts, the National Institutes of Health's Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program is the largest study of U.S. children's health. Here, we: (1) review ECHO-wide studies of chemical exposures and maternal-child health; and (2) outline opportunities for future research using ECHO data. RECENT FINDINGS As of early 2024, in addition to over 200 single-cohort (or award) papers on chemical exposures supported by ECHO, ten collaborative multi-cohort papers have been made possible by ECHO data harmonization and new data collection. Multi-cohort papers have examined prenatal exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), phthalates, phenols and parabens, organophosphate esters (OPEs), metals, melamine and aromatic amines, and emerging contaminants. They have primarily focused on describing patterns of maternal exposure or examining associations with maternal and infant outcomes; fewer studies have examined later child outcomes (e.g., autism) although follow up of enrolled ECHO children continues. The NICHD's Data and Specimen Hub (DASH) database houses extensive ECHO data including over 470,000 chemical assay results and complementary data on priority outcome areas (pre, peri-, and postnatal, airway, obesity, neurodevelopment, and positive health), making it a rich resource for future analyses. ECHO's extensive data repository, including biomarkers of chemical exposures, can be used to advance our understanding of environmental influences on children's health. Although few published studies have capitalized on these unique harmonized data to date, many analyses are underway with data now widely available.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily S Barrett
- Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Rutgers School of Public Health; Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Piscataway, NJ, USA.
| | - Jennifer L Ames
- Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland, CA, USA
| | - Stephanie M Eick
- Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health and Department of Epidemiology, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Alicia K Peterson
- Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland, CA, USA
| | - Zorimar Rivera-Núñez
- Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Rutgers School of Public Health; Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Piscataway, NJ, USA
| | - Anne P Starling
- Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Jessie P Buckley
- Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
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Motsinger-Reif AA, Reif DM, Akhtari FS, House JS, Campbell CR, Messier KP, Fargo DC, Bowen TA, Nadadur SS, Schmitt CP, Pettibone KG, Balshaw DM, Lawler CP, Newton SA, Collman GW, Miller AK, Merrick BA, Cui Y, Anchang B, Harmon QE, McAllister KA, Woychik R. Gene-environment interactions within a precision environmental health framework. CELL GENOMICS 2024; 4:100591. [PMID: 38925123 PMCID: PMC11293590 DOI: 10.1016/j.xgen.2024.100591] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Revised: 03/26/2024] [Accepted: 06/02/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024]
Abstract
Understanding the complex interplay of genetic and environmental factors in disease etiology and the role of gene-environment interactions (GEIs) across human development stages is important. We review the state of GEI research, including challenges in measuring environmental factors and advantages of GEI analysis in understanding disease mechanisms. We discuss the evolution of GEI studies from candidate gene-environment studies to genome-wide interaction studies (GWISs) and the role of multi-omics in mediating GEI effects. We review advancements in GEI analysis methods and the importance of large-scale datasets. We also address the translation of GEI findings into precision environmental health (PEH), showcasing real-world applications in healthcare and disease prevention. Additionally, we highlight societal considerations in GEI research, including environmental justice, the return of results to participants, and data privacy. Overall, we underscore the significance of GEI for disease prediction and prevention and advocate for integrating the exposome into PEH omics studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alison A Motsinger-Reif
- Biostatistics and Computational Biology Branch, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA.
| | - David M Reif
- Predictive Toxicology Branch, Division of Translational Toxicology, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Farida S Akhtari
- Biostatistics and Computational Biology Branch, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - John S House
- Biostatistics and Computational Biology Branch, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - C Ryan Campbell
- Biostatistics and Computational Biology Branch, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Kyle P Messier
- Biostatistics and Computational Biology Branch, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA; Predictive Toxicology Branch, Division of Translational Toxicology, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - David C Fargo
- Office of the Director, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Tiffany A Bowen
- Office of the Director, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Srikanth S Nadadur
- Exposure, Response, and Technology Branch, Division of Extramural Research and Training, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Charles P Schmitt
- Office of the Scientific Director, Office of Data Science, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Kristianna G Pettibone
- Program Analysis Branch, Division of Extramural Research and Training, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - David M Balshaw
- Office of the Director, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA; Division of Extramural Research and Training, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Cindy P Lawler
- Genes, Environment, and Health Branch, Division of Extramural Research and Training, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Shelia A Newton
- Office of Scientific Coordination, Planning and Evaluation, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Gwen W Collman
- Office of the Director, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA; Office of Scientific Coordination, Planning and Evaluation, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Aubrey K Miller
- Office of Scientific Coordination, Planning and Evaluation, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - B Alex Merrick
- Mechanistic Toxicology Branch, Division of Translational Toxicology, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Yuxia Cui
- Exposure, Response, and Technology Branch, Division of Extramural Research and Training, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Benedict Anchang
- Biostatistics and Computational Biology Branch, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Quaker E Harmon
- Epidemiology Branch, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Kimberly A McAllister
- Genes, Environment, and Health Branch, Division of Extramural Research and Training, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Rick Woychik
- Office of the Director, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, USA
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Carlin DJ, Rider CV. Combined Exposures and Mixtures Research: An Enduring NIEHS Priority. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 2024; 132:75001. [PMID: 38968090 PMCID: PMC11225971 DOI: 10.1289/ehp14340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2023] [Revised: 04/25/2024] [Accepted: 06/12/2024] [Indexed: 07/07/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) continues to prioritize research to better understand the health effects resulting from exposure to mixtures of chemical and nonchemical stressors. Mixtures research activities over the last decade were informed by expert input during the development and deliberations of the 2011 NIEHS Workshop "Advancing Research on Mixtures: New Perspectives and Approaches for Predicting Adverse Human Health Effects." NIEHS mixtures research efforts since then have focused on key themes including a) prioritizing mixtures for study, b) translating mixtures data from in vitro and in vivo studies, c) developing cross-disciplinary collaborations, d) informing component-based and whole-mixture assessment approaches, e) developing sufficient similarity methods to compare across complex mixtures, f) using systems-based approaches to evaluate mixtures, and g) focusing on management and integration of mixtures-related data. OBJECTIVES We aimed to describe NIEHS driven research on mixtures and combined exposures over the last decade and present areas for future attention. RESULTS Intramural and extramural mixtures research projects have incorporated a diverse array of chemicals (e.g., polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, botanicals, personal care products, wildfire emissions) and nonchemical stressors (e.g., socioeconomic factors, social adversity) and have focused on many diseases (e.g., breast cancer, atherosclerosis, immune disruption). We have made significant progress in certain areas, such as developing statistical methods for evaluating multiple chemical associations in epidemiology and building translational mixtures projects that include both in vitro and in vivo models. DISCUSSION Moving forward, additional work is needed to improve mixtures data integration, elucidate interactions between chemical and nonchemical stressors, and resolve the geospatial and temporal nature of mixture exposures. Continued mixtures research will be critical to informing cumulative impact assessments and addressing complex challenges, such as environmental justice and climate change. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP14340.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danielle J. Carlin
- Division of Extramural Research and Training, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA
| | - Cynthia V. Rider
- Division of Translational Toxicology, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA
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Rushing BR, Thessen AE, Soliman GA, Ramesh A, Sumner SCJ. The Exposome and Nutritional Pharmacology and Toxicology: A New Application for Metabolomics. EXPOSOME 2023; 3:osad008. [PMID: 38766521 PMCID: PMC11101153 DOI: 10.1093/exposome/osad008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/22/2024]
Abstract
The exposome refers to all of the internal and external life-long exposures that an individual experiences. These exposures, either acute or chronic, are associated with changes in metabolism that will positively or negatively influence the health and well-being of individuals. Nutrients and other dietary compounds modulate similar biochemical processes and have the potential in some cases to counteract the negative effects of exposures or enhance their beneficial effects. We present herein the concept of Nutritional Pharmacology/Toxicology which uses high-information metabolomics workflows to identify metabolic targets associated with exposures. Using this information, nutritional interventions can be designed toward those targets to mitigate adverse effects or enhance positive effects. We also discuss the potential for this approach in precision nutrition where nutrients/diet can be used to target gene-environment interactions and other subpopulation characteristics. Deriving these "nutrient cocktails" presents an opportunity to modify the effects of exposures for more beneficial outcomes in public health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Blake R. Rushing
- Department of Nutrition, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Anne E Thessen
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Ghada A. Soliman
- Department of Environmental, Occupational and Geospatial Health Sciences, City University of New York-Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, New York, NY, USA
| | - Aramandla Ramesh
- Department of Biochemistry, Cancer Biology, Neuroscience & Pharmacology, Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Susan CJ Sumner
- Department of Nutrition, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
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Bragg MG, Westlake M, Alshawabkeh AN, Bekelman TA, Camargo CA, Catellier DJ, Comstock SS, Dabelea D, Dunlop AL, Hedderson MM, Hockett CW, Karagas MR, Keenan K, Kelly NR, Kerver JM, MacKenzie D, Mahabir S, Maldonado LE, McCormack LA, Melough MM, Mueller NT, Nelson ME, O’Connor TG, Oken E, O’Shea TM, Switkowski KM, Sauder KA, Wright RJ, Wright RO, Zhang X, Zhu Y, Lyall K. Opportunities for Examining Child Health Impacts of Early-Life Nutrition in the ECHO Program: Maternal and Child Dietary Intake Data from Pregnancy to Adolescence. Curr Dev Nutr 2023; 7:102019. [PMID: 38035205 PMCID: PMC10681943 DOI: 10.1016/j.cdnut.2023.102019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2023] [Revised: 10/10/2023] [Accepted: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 12/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Longitudinal measures of diet spanning pregnancy through adolescence are needed from a large, diverse sample to advance research on the effect of early-life nutrition on child health. The Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program, which includes 69 cohorts, >33,000 pregnancies, and >31,000 children in its first 7-y cycle, provides such data, now publicly available. Objectives This study aimed to describe dietary intake data available in the ECHO Program as of 31 August, 2022 (end of year 6 of Cycle 1) from pregnancy through adolescence, including estimated sample sizes, and to highlight the potential for future analyses of nutrition and child health. Methods We identified and categorized ECHO Program dietary intake data, by assessment method, participant (pregnant person or child), and life stage of data collection. We calculated the number of maternal-child dyads with dietary data and the number of participants with repeated measures. We identified diet-related variables derived from raw dietary intake data and nutrient biomarkers measured from biospecimens. Results Overall, 66 cohorts (26,941 pregnancies, 27,103 children, including 22,712 dyads) across 34 US states/territories provided dietary intake data. Dietary intake assessments included 24-h recalls (1548 pregnancies and 1457 children), food frequency questionnaires (4902 and 4117), dietary screeners (8816 and 23,626), and dietary supplement use questionnaires (24,798 and 26,513). Repeated measures were available for ∼70%, ∼30%, and ∼15% of participants with 24-h recalls, food frequency questionnaires, and dietary screeners, respectively. The available diet-related variables describe nutrient and food intake, diet patterns, and breastfeeding practices. Overall, 17% of participants with dietary intake data had measured nutrient biomarkers. Conclusions ECHO cohorts have collected longitudinal dietary intake data spanning pregnancy through adolescence from a geographically, socioeconomically, and ethnically diverse US sample. As data collection continues in Cycle 2, these data present an opportunity to advance the field of nutrition and child health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Megan G. Bragg
- AJ Drexel Autism Institute, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Matt Westlake
- RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC, United States
| | | | - Traci A. Bekelman
- Lifecourse Epidemiology of Adiposity and Diabetes (LEAD) Center, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States
| | - Carlos A. Camargo
- Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | | | - Sarah S. Comstock
- Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States
| | - Dana Dabelea
- Lifecourse Epidemiology of Adiposity and Diabetes (LEAD) Center, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States
| | - Anne L. Dunlop
- Department of Gynecology & Obstetrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Monique M. Hedderson
- Kaiser Permanente Northern California Division of Research, Oakland, CA, United States
| | - Christine W. Hockett
- Avera Research Institute, Sioux Falls, SD, United States
- Department of Pediatrics, University of South Dakota School of Medicine, Sioux Falls, SD, United States
| | - Margaret R. Karagas
- Department of Epidemiology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, United States
| | - Kate Keenan
- Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Nichole R. Kelly
- Department of Counseling Psychology and Human Services, College of Education, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, United States
| | - Jean M. Kerver
- Departments of Epidemiology & Biostatistics and Pediatrics & Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States
| | - Debra MacKenzie
- Community Environmental Health Program, College of Pharmacy, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM, United States
| | - Somdat Mahabir
- National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Luis E. Maldonado
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Lacey A. McCormack
- Avera Research Institute, Sioux Falls, SD, United States
- Department of Pediatrics, University of South Dakota School of Medicine, Sioux Falls, SD, United States
| | - Melissa M. Melough
- Department of Health Behavior and Nutrition Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, United States
- Department of Child Health, Behavior and Development, Seattle Children’s Research Institute, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Noel T. Mueller
- Department of Epidemiology, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | | | - Thomas G. O’Connor
- Departments of Psychiatry, Neuroscience, Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, United States
| | - Emily Oken
- Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA, United States
| | - T Michael O’Shea
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - Karen M. Switkowski
- Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Katherine A. Sauder
- Lifecourse Epidemiology of Adiposity and Diabetes (LEAD) Center, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States
| | - Rosalind J. Wright
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Robert O. Wright
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Xueying Zhang
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Yeyi Zhu
- Kaiser Permanente Northern California Division of Research, Oakland, CA, United States
| | - Kristen Lyall
- AJ Drexel Autism Institute, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
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He Z, Pfaff E, Guo SJ, Guo Y, Wu Y, Tao C, Stiglic G, Bian J. Enriching Real-world Data with Social Determinants of Health for Health Outcomes and Health Equity: Successes, Challenges, and Opportunities. Yearb Med Inform 2023; 32:253-263. [PMID: 38147867 PMCID: PMC10751148 DOI: 10.1055/s-0043-1768732] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To summarize the recent methods and applications that leverage real-world data such as electronic health records (EHRs) with social determinants of health (SDoH) for public and population health and health equity and identify successes, challenges, and possible solutions. METHODS In this opinion review, grounded on a social-ecological-model-based conceptual framework, we surveyed data sources and recent informatics approaches that enable leveraging SDoH along with real-world data to support public health and clinical health applications including helping design public health intervention, enhancing risk stratification, and enabling the prediction of unmet social needs. RESULTS Besides summarizing data sources, we identified gaps in capturing SDoH data in existing EHR systems and opportunities to leverage informatics approaches to collect SDoH information either from structured and unstructured EHR data or through linking with public surveys and environmental data. We also surveyed recently developed ontologies for standardizing SDoH information and approaches that incorporate SDoH for disease risk stratification, public health crisis prediction, and development of tailored interventions. CONCLUSIONS To enable effective public health and clinical applications using real-world data with SDoH, it is necessary to develop both non-technical solutions involving incentives, policies, and training as well as technical solutions such as novel social risk management tools that are integrated into clinical workflow. Ultimately, SDoH-powered social risk management, disease risk prediction, and development of SDoH tailored interventions for disease prevention and management have the potential to improve population health, reduce disparities, and improve health equity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhe He
- School of Information, Florida State University, United States
- Department of Behavioral Sciences and Social Medicine, College of Medicine, Florida State University, United States
| | - Emily Pfaff
- Department of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine, United States
| | - Serena Jingchuan Guo
- Department of Pharmaceutical Outcomes and Policy, College of Pharmacy, University of Florida, United States
| | - Yi Guo
- Department of Health Outcomes and Biomedical Informatics, College of Medicine, University of Florida, United States
| | - Yonghui Wu
- Department of Health Outcomes and Biomedical Informatics, College of Medicine, University of Florida, United States
| | - Cui Tao
- School of Biomedical Informatics, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, United States
| | - Gregor Stiglic
- Faculty of Health Science, University of Maribor, Slovenia
- Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of Maribor, Slovenia
- Usher Institute, University of Edinburgh, UK
| | - Jiang Bian
- Department of Health Outcomes and Biomedical Informatics, College of Medicine, University of Florida, United States
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7
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Taibl KR, Dunlop AL, Barr DB, Li YY, Eick SM, Kannan K, Ryan PB, Schroder M, Rushing B, Fennell T, Chang CJ, Tan Y, Marsit CJ, Jones DP, Liang D. Newborn metabolomic signatures of maternal per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance exposure and reduced length of gestation. Nat Commun 2023; 14:3120. [PMID: 37253729 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-38710-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2022] [Accepted: 05/10/2023] [Indexed: 06/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Marginalized populations experience disproportionate rates of preterm birth and early term birth. Exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) has been reported to reduce length of gestation, but the underlying mechanisms are unknown. In the present study, we characterized the molecular signatures of prenatal PFAS exposure and gestational age at birth outcomes in the newborn dried blood spot metabolome among 267 African American dyads in Atlanta, Georgia between 2016 and 2020. Pregnant people with higher serum perfluorooctanoic acid and perfluorohexane sulfonic acid concentrations had increased odds of an early birth. After false discovery rate correction, the effect of prenatal PFAS exposure on reduced length of gestation was associated with 8 metabolomic pathways and 52 metabolites in newborn dried blood spots, which suggested perturbed tissue neogenesis, neuroendocrine function, and redox homeostasis. These mechanisms explain how prenatal PFAS exposure gives rise to the leading cause of infant death in the United States.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaitlin R Taibl
- Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Anne L Dunlop
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
| | - Dana Boyd Barr
- Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Yuan-Yuan Li
- Metabolomics and Exposome Laboratory, Nutrition Research Institute, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Stephanie M Eick
- Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Kurunthachalam Kannan
- Department of Pediatrics, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Environmental Medicine, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - P Barry Ryan
- Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Madison Schroder
- Metabolomics and Exposome Laboratory, Nutrition Research Institute, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Blake Rushing
- Metabolomics and Exposome Laboratory, Nutrition Research Institute, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Timothy Fennell
- Analytical Chemistry and Pharmaceuticals, RTI International, Research Triangle Park, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Che-Jung Chang
- Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Youran Tan
- Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Carmen J Marsit
- Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Dean P Jones
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Donghai Liang
- Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
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8
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Chan LE, Thessen AE, Duncan WD, Matentzoglu N, Schmitt C, Grondin CJ, Vasilevsky N, McMurry JA, Robinson PN, Mungall CJ, Haendel MA. The Environmental Conditions, Treatments, and Exposures Ontology (ECTO): connecting toxicology and exposure to human health and beyond. J Biomed Semantics 2023; 14:3. [PMID: 36823605 PMCID: PMC9951428 DOI: 10.1186/s13326-023-00283-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2022] [Accepted: 02/03/2023] [Indexed: 02/25/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Evaluating the impact of environmental exposures on organism health is a key goal of modern biomedicine and is critically important in an age of greater pollution and chemicals in our environment. Environmental health utilizes many different research methods and generates a variety of data types. However, to date, no comprehensive database represents the full spectrum of environmental health data. Due to a lack of interoperability between databases, tools for integrating these resources are needed. In this manuscript we present the Environmental Conditions, Treatments, and Exposures Ontology (ECTO), a species-agnostic ontology focused on exposure events that occur as a result of natural and experimental processes, such as diet, work, or research activities. ECTO is intended for use in harmonizing environmental health data resources to support cross-study integration and inference for mechanism discovery. METHODS AND FINDINGS ECTO is an ontology designed for describing organismal exposures such as toxicological research, environmental variables, dietary features, and patient-reported data from surveys. ECTO utilizes the base model established within the Exposure Ontology (ExO). ECTO is developed using a combination of manual curation and Dead Simple OWL Design Patterns (DOSDP), and contains over 2700 environmental exposure terms, and incorporates chemical and environmental ontologies. ECTO is an Open Biological and Biomedical Ontology (OBO) Foundry ontology that is designed for interoperability, reuse, and axiomatization with other ontologies. ECTO terms have been utilized in axioms within the Mondo Disease Ontology to represent diseases caused or influenced by environmental factors, as well as for survey encoding for the Personalized Environment and Genes Study (PEGS). CONCLUSIONS We constructed ECTO to meet Open Biological and Biomedical Ontology (OBO) Foundry principles to increase translation opportunities between environmental health and other areas of biology. ECTO has a growing community of contributors consisting of toxicologists, public health epidemiologists, and health care providers to provide the necessary expertise for areas that have been identified previously as gaps.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren E. Chan
- grid.4391.f0000 0001 2112 1969Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331 USA
| | - Anne E. Thessen
- grid.4391.f0000 0001 2112 1969Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331 USA ,grid.430503.10000 0001 0703 675XUniversity of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80054 USA
| | - William D. Duncan
- grid.15276.370000 0004 1936 8091University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610 USA
| | | | - Charles Schmitt
- grid.280664.e0000 0001 2110 5790National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC 27709 USA
| | - Cynthia J. Grondin
- grid.40803.3f0000 0001 2173 6074North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27965 USA
| | - Nicole Vasilevsky
- grid.430503.10000 0001 0703 675XUniversity of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80054 USA
| | - Julie A. McMurry
- grid.430503.10000 0001 0703 675XUniversity of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80054 USA
| | - Peter N. Robinson
- grid.249880.f0000 0004 0374 0039The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, Farmington, CT 06032 USA
| | - Christopher J. Mungall
- grid.184769.50000 0001 2231 4551Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
| | - Melissa A. Haendel
- grid.4391.f0000 0001 2112 1969Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331 USA ,grid.430503.10000 0001 0703 675XUniversity of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80054 USA
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9
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Integrating Multiscale Geospatial Environmental Data into Large Population Health Studies: Challenges and Opportunities. TOXICS 2022; 10:toxics10070403. [PMID: 35878308 PMCID: PMC9316943 DOI: 10.3390/toxics10070403] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2022] [Revised: 07/09/2022] [Accepted: 07/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022]
Abstract
Quantifying the exposome is key to understanding how the environment impacts human health and disease. However, accurately, and cost-effectively quantifying exposure in large population health studies remains a major challenge. Geospatial technologies offer one mechanism to integrate high-dimensional environmental data into epidemiology studies, but can present several challenges. In June 2021, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) held a workshop bringing together experts in exposure science, geospatial technologies, data science and population health to address the need for integrating multiscale geospatial environmental data into large population health studies. The primary objectives of the workshop were to highlight recent applications of geospatial technologies to examine the relationships between environmental exposures and health outcomes; identify research gaps and discuss future directions for exposure modeling, data integration and data analysis strategies; and facilitate communications and collaborations across geospatial and population health experts. This commentary provides a high-level overview of the scientific topics covered by the workshop and themes that emerged as areas for future work, including reducing measurement errors and uncertainty in exposure estimates, and improving data accessibility, data interoperability, and computational approaches for more effective multiscale and multi-source data integration, along with potential solutions.
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10
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Mandal M, Levy J, Ives C, Hwang S, Zhou YH, Motsinger-Reif A, Pan H, Huggins W, Hamilton C, Wright F, Edwards S. Correlation Analysis of Variables From the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study. Front Pharmacol 2022; 13:883433. [PMID: 35899108 PMCID: PMC9310100 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2022.883433] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2022] [Accepted: 06/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The need to test chemicals in a timely and cost-effective manner has driven the development of new alternative methods (NAMs) that utilize in silico and in vitro approaches for toxicity prediction. There is a wealth of existing data from human studies that can aid in understanding the ability of NAMs to support chemical safety assessment. This study aims to streamline the integration of data from existing human cohorts by programmatically identifying related variables within each study. Study variables from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study were clustered based on their correlation within the study. The quality of the clusters was evaluated via a combination of manual review and natural language processing (NLP). We identified 391 clusters including 3,285 variables. Manual review of the clusters containing more than one variable determined that human reviewers considered 95% of the clusters related to some degree. To evaluate potential bias in the human reviewers, clusters were also scored via NLP, which showed a high concordance with the human classification. Clusters were further consolidated into cluster groups using the Louvain community finding algorithm. Manual review of the cluster groups confirmed that clusters within a group were more related than clusters from different groups. Our data-driven approach can facilitate data harmonization and curation efforts by providing human annotators with groups of related variables reflecting the themes present in the data. Reviewing groups of related variables should increase efficiency of the human review, and the number of variables reviewed can be reduced by focusing curator attention on variable groups whose theme is relevant for the topic being studied.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meisha Mandal
- GenOmics, Bioinformatics, and Translational Research Center, RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC, United States
| | - Josh Levy
- Levy Informatics, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - Cataia Ives
- GenOmics, Bioinformatics, and Translational Research Center, RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC, United States
| | - Stephen Hwang
- GenOmics, Bioinformatics, and Translational Research Center, RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC, United States
| | - Yi-Hui Zhou
- Department of Statistics, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, United States
- Bioinformatics Research Center and Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, United States
| | - Alison Motsinger-Reif
- Biostatistics and Computational Biology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Huaqin Pan
- GenOmics, Bioinformatics, and Translational Research Center, RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC, United States
| | - Wayne Huggins
- GenOmics, Bioinformatics, and Translational Research Center, RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC, United States
| | - Carol Hamilton
- GenOmics, Bioinformatics, and Translational Research Center, RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC, United States
| | - Fred Wright
- Department of Statistics, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, United States
- Bioinformatics Research Center and Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, United States
| | - Stephen Edwards
- GenOmics, Bioinformatics, and Translational Research Center, RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC, United States
- *Correspondence: Stephen Edwards,
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11
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Lebow-Skelley E, Young L, Noibi Y, Blaginin K, Hooker M, Williamson D, Tomlinson MS, Kegler MC, Pearson MA. Defining the Exposome Using Popular Education and Concept Mapping With Communities in Atlanta, Georgia. Front Public Health 2022; 10:842539. [PMID: 35493396 PMCID: PMC9039048 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.842539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2021] [Accepted: 03/09/2022] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction The exposome concept provides a framework to better incorporate the environment into the study of health and disease and has been defined by academics to encompass all lifetime exposures including toxicants, diet, and lifestyle choices. However, initial applications of the exposome concept have been less apt at measuring social determinants of health, focusing primarily on conventional environmental exposures and lifestyle choices that do not reflect the complex lived experience of many communities. To bring community voice into the exposome concept, the HERCULES Exposome Research Center and its Stakeholder Advisory Board co-developed the Exposome Roadshow. We present and discuss the resulting community-exposome definition to inform and improve exposome research. Materials and Methods Four communities from distinct areas across metro-Atlanta participated in separate 2-day Exposome Roadshow workshops with concept mapping. Aligned with a popular education approach in which community knowledge is used to work collectively for change, concept mapping provided a systematic method to collect and visualize community members' knowledge and create a shared understanding to take action. Community members brainstormed, sorted, and rated their responses to the prompt: "What in your environment is affecting your and your community's health?" Responses were analyzed and visually depicted by concept maps consisting of separate but interrelated clusters of ideas. Community members discussed and validated the maps, selecting a final map illustrating their community's exposome. Results A total of 118 community members completed concept mapping. On average communities identified 7 clusters to define their exposome. The resulting concept maps offer a community definition of the exposome. Five major themes arose across all four communities: conventional environmental concerns, built environment, social relationships, crime and safety, and individual health and behaviors. Discussion The resulting community-exposome definition demonstrates the importance of expanding the scope of exposures beyond traditional environmental influences to include the lived experience of individuals and communities. While newer exposome definitions align more closely with this community definition, traditional exposome methods do not routinely include these factors. To truly capture the totality of lifetime exposures and improve human health, researchers should incorporate community perspectives into exposome research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin Lebow-Skelley
- HERCULES Exposome Research Center, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States,*Correspondence: Erin Lebow-Skelley
| | - Lynne Young
- HERCULES Stakeholder Advisory Board, Atlanta, GA, United States,Pathways to Sustainability, Duluth, GA, United States
| | - Yomi Noibi
- HERCULES Stakeholder Advisory Board, Atlanta, GA, United States,Environmental Community Action (ECO-Action), Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Karla Blaginin
- HERCULES Stakeholder Advisory Board, Atlanta, GA, United States,Dichos de la Casa, Norcross, GA, United States
| | - Margaret Hooker
- HERCULES Stakeholder Advisory Board, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Dana Williamson
- Department of Behavioral Sciences and Health Education, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Martha Scott Tomlinson
- HERCULES Exposome Research Center, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Michelle C. Kegler
- Emory Prevention Research Center, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Melanie A. Pearson
- HERCULES Exposome Research Center, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
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12
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Busgang SA, Waller LA, Colicino E, D’Agostino R, Hertz-Picciotto I, Gennings C. Selecting External Controls for Internal Cases Using Stratification Score Matching Methods. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:2549. [PMID: 35270242 PMCID: PMC8909853 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19052549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2022] [Revised: 02/10/2022] [Accepted: 02/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Rare-disease registries can be useful for studying the associations between environmental exposures and disease severity, but often require the addition of a healthy comparison control group. Defining a surrogate control group, matched and balanced on potentially confounding variables, would allow for the comparison of exposure distributions with cases from a registry. In the present study, we assess whether controls selected externally, using stratification score (SS) matching, can serve as effective proxies for internal controls. In addition, we use methyl paraben (MEPB) to compare the estimated associations between an externally matched sample and case-control frequencies in a cohort with internally matched controls. We started with 225 eligible cases of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) from Childhood Autism Risks from Genetics and the Environment (CHARGE), 241 internal controls from CHARGE, and 265 external controls from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) cycles 2005-2016. We calculated the SSs using demographic covariates and matched 1:1 using a caliper method without a replacement. The distribution of the covariates and the mean squared error of the paired differences (MSEpaired) in the SSs between the internal and external group were similar (MSEpaired = 0.007 and 0.011, respectively). The association between MEPB and ASD compared to the controls was similar between the externally matched SS pairs and the original frequency matched cohort. Controls selected externally, via SS matching, can provide a comparable bias reduction to that provided by the internal controls, and therefore may be a useful strategy in situations when the internal controls are not available.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie A. Busgang
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; (E.C.); (C.G.)
| | - Lance A. Waller
- Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA;
| | - Elena Colicino
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; (E.C.); (C.G.)
| | - Ralph D’Agostino
- Department of Biostatistics and Data Science, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, USA;
| | - Irva Hertz-Picciotto
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA;
| | - Chris Gennings
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; (E.C.); (C.G.)
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