Sequencing the exposome: A call to action☆
نویسنده
چکیده
The exposome is a complement to the genome that includes non-genetic causes of disease. Multiple definitions are available, with salient points being global inclusion of exposures and behaviors, and cumulative integration of associated biologic responses. As such, the concept is both refreshingly simple and dauntingly complex. This article reviews high-resolution metabolomics (HRM) as an affordable approach to routinely analyze samples for a broad spectrum of environmental chemicals and biologic responses. HRM has been successfully used in multiple exposome research paradigms and is suitable to implement in a prototype universal exposure surveillance system. Development of such a structure for systematic monitoring of environmental exposures is an important step toward sequencing the exposome because it builds upon successes of exposure science, naturally connects external exposure to body burden and partitions the exposome into workable components. Practical results would be repositories of quantitative data on chemicals according to geography and biology. This would support new opportunities for environmental health analysis and predictive modeling. Complementary approaches to hasten development of exposome theory and associated biologic response networks could include experimental studies with model systems, analysis of archival samples from longitudinal studies with outcome data and study of relatively short-lived animals, such as household pets (dogs and cats) and non-human primates (common marmoset). International investment and cooperation to sequence the human exposome will advance scientific knowledge and also provide an important foundation to control adverse environmental exposures to sustain healthy living spaces and improve prediction and management of disease.
منابع مشابه
The Exposome: A New Frontier for Education.
The historic debate of nature vs. nurture has emerged as a central yin-yang of contemporary health and disease research. The Human Genome Project provided the capability to define the nature of an individual by one's genetic sequence. But tools are not available to sequence lifelong exposures (i.e., the nurture of an individual). Many believe that nurture has an even greater role than genetics ...
متن کاملSpirituality as a sociocultural determinant of health in the context of medical curriculum: A call for action
Background: This study aimed to investigate the state of spirituality in the general medicine curricula in Iran. Methods: Reference books for general medicine were reviewed and data were analyzed according to the qualitative content analysis method. Results: After reviewing references, it was found that only 35 paragraphs of the educational reference pages dealt with this subject. Relat...
متن کاملDeveloping the Regulatory Utility of the Exposome: Mapping Exposures for Risk Assessment through Lifestage Exposome Snapshots (LEnS)
BACKGROUND Exposome-related efforts aim to document the totality of human exposures across the lifecourse. This field has advanced rapidly in recent years but lacks practical application to risk assessment, particularly for children's health. OBJECTIVES Our objective was to apply the exposome to children's health risk assessment by introducing the concept of Lifestage Exposome Snapshots (LEnS...
متن کاملSingle Versus Multi-Faceted Implementation Strategies – Is There a Simple Answer to a Complex Question? A Response to Recent Commentaries and a Call to Action for Implementation Practitioners and Researchers
متن کامل
Relevance of a Toll-Free Call Service Using an Interactive Voice Server to Strengthen Health System Governance and Responsiveness in Burkina Faso
Background In Africa, health systems are poorly accessible, inequitable, and unresponsive. People rarely have either the confidence or the opportunity to express their opinions. In Burkina Faso, there is a political will to improve governance and responsiveness to create a more relevant and equitable health system. Given their development in Africa, information and communication technolog...
متن کامل