Øien Torbjørn, Storrø Ola, Johnsen Roar
Department of Public Health and General Practice, Faculty of Medicine, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), N-7489 Trondheim, Norway.
Contemp Clin Trials. 2006 Aug;27(4):389-95. doi: 10.1016/j.cct.2006.02.009. Epub 2006 Apr 7.
In the past 20-30 years, the prevalence of atopic diseases, particularly among children in the Western world, has increased. It has been suggested that Western lifestyle may have reduced the overall exposure to microbial stimulation early in life. The role of the gut flora in this connection has been studied, but prospective studies are in demand. Within the frame of a comprehensive controlled prospective primary prevention study of atopy and allergic diseases with the aim to reduce the incidence of atopy and allergic diseases among children from birth to six years, a nested case-cohort study is established, "The IMPACT study".
The aim of "The IMPACT study" is to study the impact of gut microbiota composition on cytokine profile development, and on development of atopic disease.
Information on risk factors and on disease, together with biological specimens, will be collected prospectively, and analysed in a nested case-cohort design.
720 pregnant women are recruited from the control-cohort in the PACT study. The composition of the infant gut microbiota is analysed in stool samples from all children with atopic disease, and randomly selected children sensitized and not sensitized at age 2, at 4, 7, 10 days after birth, and at age 4, 12 and 24 months. 16S rDNA hybridisation technique will be used to specify and quantify the microbial composition in faeces. Cord blood from the same children and venous blood at age 10 days, 4, 12 and 24 months are collected to study the cytokine profile at different ages, in relation to microbial stimulation. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) are stored in liquid nitrogen, and faeces are stored at -80 degrees C. Atopic children will be identified by questionnaire, and the diagnosis confirmed by paediatric examination at age 2 years.
在过去20至30年中，特应性疾病的患病率有所上升，尤其是在西方世界的儿童中。有人认为西方生活方式可能减少了生命早期对微生物刺激的总体暴露。肠道菌群在这方面的作用已得到研究，但仍需要前瞻性研究。在一项旨在降低出生至6岁儿童特应性疾病和过敏性疾病发病率的综合性对照前瞻性一级预防研究框架内，建立了一项巢式病例队列研究，即“IMPACT研究”。
“IMPACT研究”的目的是研究肠道微生物群组成对细胞因子谱发育以及特应性疾病发展的影响。
前瞻性收集有关危险因素和疾病的信息以及生物标本，并采用巢式病例队列设计进行分析。
从PACT研究的对照队列中招募720名孕妇。对所有患有特应性疾病的儿童以及在出生后4、7、10天以及4、12和24个月时随机选择的致敏和未致敏儿童的粪便样本进行婴儿肠道微生物群组成分析。将使用16S rDNA杂交技术来确定和量化粪便中的微生物组成。收集同一儿童的脐带血以及10天、4、12和24个月时的静脉血，以研究不同年龄与微生物刺激相关的细胞因子谱。外周血单个核细胞（PBMC）储存在液氮中，粪便储存在-80摄氏度。通过问卷调查识别特应性儿童，并在2岁时通过儿科检查确诊。
