Role of Peanut Allergen in Urban Schools and Preschools

描述（由申请人提供）：本提案详细说明了一个五年计划，为候选人William Sheehan医学博士提供知识和专业知识，使其成为过敏和免疫学领域的独立研究者。拟议的研究项目集中在评估儿童环境中可检测的花生蛋白暴露量的新策略上，如家庭、学校和幼儿园。最近有理论认为，小时候不吃食物导致了食物过敏的增加，因为儿童是通过皮肤接触环境中少量的食物蛋白质而变得敏感的。希恩博士提出的初步数据表明，在学校和家庭中可以检测到花生蛋白（Ara h2）的含量。候选人将使用其导师Wanda Phipatanakul博士（目前niaid资助的研究名为“学校和内城哮喘研究”）建立的基础设施；通过对吸尘和桌面擦拭样品的分析，进一步探讨花生蛋白在环境中的研究。除了评估家庭和学校，还将评估为幼儿提供的无花生幼儿园。此外，希恩博士将评估这种环境花生暴露对健康结果的影响。具体来说，他将研究暴露于环境花生蛋白对哮喘发病率的影响，特别关注那些被认为有最高风险受到这种皮肤暴露影响的儿童。“有风险”的群体将是

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This proposal details a five-year plan to provide the candidate, William Sheehan, MD, with the knowledge and expertise to become an independent investigator in the field of Allergy and Immunology. The proposed research project is centered on a novel strategy of evaluating the amount of detectable environmental peanut protein exposure in childhood environments, such as homes, schools, and preschools. It has recently been theorized that avoidance of foods at a young age has contributed to the rise in food allergies, because children were instead becoming sensitized by cutaneous exposure to small amounts of food proteins in the environment. Dr. Sheehan presents preliminary data demonstrating detectable amounts of peanut protein (Ara h 2) in schools and homes. The candidate will use the established infrastructure of his mentor, Dr. Wanda Phipatanakul (current NIAID-funded study entitled School and Inner City Asthma Study); to further explore the study of peanut protein in the environment by analyzing vacuumed dust and table wipe samples. In addition to evaluating homes and schools, peanut-free preschools serving very young children will also be evaluated. Additionally, Dr. Sheehan will evaluate the effect of this environmental peanut exposure on health outcomes. Specifically, he will investigate the effect of exposure to environmental peanut protein on asthma morbidity with a particular focus on children considered to be at the highest risk of being affected by this cutaneous exposure. The "at risk" group will be defined by an enrolled subject with any one of the following conditions: (1) peanut allergy, (2) eczema, or (3) filaggrin gene mutation. Dr. Sheehan will work under the mentorship of Dr. Phipatanakul, an expert in environmental exposures and the relationship with allergic diseases. Dr. Sheehan has also assembled a team of extraordinary researchers, including Drs. Diane Gold, Raif Geha, and Brent Coull, who have committed their time, resources, and expertise to facilitate his career development and research goals. During the period of support for the candidate, he will engage in formal education on clinical research by obtaining a Master of Medical Sciences (MMSc) degree from the Scholars in Clinical Science Program at Harvard Medical School. This program will provide him with further skills in advanced biostatistics, epidemiology, clinical study design, clinical genetics, and scientific writing. Under the guidance of his primary mentor and collaborative team, in an ideal scientific and clinical environment at Boston Children's Hospital, the research project and career development plan will position the candidate to secure independent NIH funding and to establish himself as an independent clinical researcher in the field of environmental food exposures and allergic diseases, a relatively neglected area of investigation.