Prenatal and infant household air pollution exposure, the human microbiome and virome, and childhood lung function: the GRAPHS randomized controlled trial

Icahn School Of Medicine At Mount Sinai, New York NY

Investigators

Abstract

Project summary In low- and middle-income countries ~2.8 billion people are exposed daily to smoke from cooking fires, termed household air pollution (HAP), resulting in an estimated 2.3M deaths and 91.4M disability adjusted life years in 2019. A large proportion of HAP-attributable deaths are due to respiratory disease over the life course. Establishment of lung health in childhood is critical to reduce risk for future respiratory disease. We propose to build on an existing pregnancy cohort in Ghana – the Ghana Randomized Air Pollution and Health Study, or GRAPHS – to assess how randomized early life air pollution exposure programs subsequent microbiome and virome over childhood, and how these changes are further associated with lung function and lung function growth. We will use well-established, validated methods to assess these outcomes. In the long run, our research will help build the evidence base for public health interventions to reduce HAP exposure-associated respiratory disease.