Human Adenovirus-36 Antibody Status and Development of Childhood Obesity

描述（由申请人提供）：在过去30年中，美国儿童和青少年肥胖的患病率大约增加了两倍，全球观察到类似的趋势。这是一个重大的公共卫生问题，因为肥胖的儿童和青少年在近期和长期内面临更大的健康问题风险。大量的科学工作致力于了解儿童肥胖的原因，以及整体肥胖流行病。即使有了这一重大奋进，对肥胖的病因在整个生命过程中的理解仍然不完全。可以得出的结论是，肥胖的原因是异质性的，可能是由于与能量摄入和支出，遗传和环境因素相关的因素之间复杂的相互作用。尽管这种不完整的理解，绝大多数研究继续关注与能量摄入和支出相关的因素，并在较小程度上关注遗传学，社会经济和心理社会方面;科学界承认，研究工作需要更全面地超越这些因素。动物研究一致表明，Adv 36感染导致过量脂肪组织沉积和肥胖，而细胞和分子研究提供了合理的潜在机制。迄今为止，对人类的研究有限。一些成人横断面研究检查了Adv 36感染的血清阳性是否与肥胖有关。一些研究显示，与非肥胖参与者相比，肥胖参与者中Adv 36血清阳性的比例显着更高，而另一些研究则发现感染的患病率没有差异。另一方面，在儿童中检查该问题的少数横断面研究均发现，肥胖儿童中Adv 36血清阳性的患病率高于非肥胖儿童。这些人体研究很有趣，但由于缺乏时间性、样本量小和简单的统计方法而受到限制。因此，我们建议进行更深入的研究。具体而言，在来自NHLBI国家生长和健康研究（NGHS）的839名黑人和白色女孩中，我们将使用金标准试验在两个时间点评估Adv 36的血清阳性。我们将把这项新的测量方法整合到这项研究的丰富数据库中，并进行全面的统计分析，检查Adv 36感染与儿童肥胖测量的各个方面。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The prevalence of childhood and adolescent obesity in the United States has approximately tripled over the last 30 years, with similar trends observed globally. This is a significant public health issue as children and adolescents who are obese are at greater risk for a spectrum of health problems in the near and long term. Substantial scientific effort has been devoted to understanding the causes of childhood obesity, and the overall obesity epidemic. Even with this significant endeavor there is an incomplete understanding of the etiology of obesity throughout the life-course. What can be concluded is that the causes of obesity are heterogeneous and likely result from a complex interplay between factors related to energy intake and expenditure, genetics, and environmental factors. Despite this incomplete understanding the vast majority of research has continued to focus on factors related to energy intake and expenditure and to a lesser extent genetics, socioeconomic and psychosocial aspects; the scientific community is acknowledging that research efforts need to be more comprehensive beyond these factors One burgeoning area of obesity related research has examined an infectious contributor, specifically human adenovirus-36 (Adv36). Animal studies have consistently shown that infection with Adv36 leads to excess adipose tissue deposition and obesity, while cellular and molecular studies have provided plausible underlying mechanisms. The studies in humans are limited to date. A handful of cross-sectional studies in adults have examined whether seropositivity for Adv36 infection is associated with obesity. Some showed a significantly greater proportion of Adv36 seropositivity in obese vs. non-obese participants, whereas others found no difference in prevalence of infection. On the other hand, the few cross-sectional studies that have examined this question in children all found a greater prevalence of Adv36 seropositivity in obese vs. non- obese children. These human studies are intriguing but limited by the lack of temporality, small samples, and simple statistical approaches. Therefore, we are proposing a more thorough study. Specifically, in 839 black and white girls from the NHLBI National Growth and Health Study (NGHS) we will assess the seropositivity of Adv36 at two time points using the gold standard assay. We will integrate this new measure into the rich database from the study and carry out comprehensive statistical analyses examining aspects of Adv36 infection with measures of childhood obesity.