The Personalized Environment and Genes Study

作为个性化环境和基因研究的联合PI，我使用这些数据指导了许多科学项目。PEGS的数据包括全基因组测序、广泛的健康和暴露问卷、基于居住史的地理信息系统对暴露的估计，以及最近的表观遗传学数据。这种丰富的资源使最近发布的几个项目成为可能。以下是这些已发表的项目的摘要。 哮喘是一种慢性呼吸障碍，其病因是多方面的，涉及基因和环境。一项研究在北卡罗来纳州的一个多种族队列中探索了基因与晚发性哮喘的关系，考虑了种族和民族。我们发现MHC区域的多个基因变异与晚发性哮喘有关，这些变异与种族有关。 集中饲养动物作业(CAFO)会造成污染并影响健康。考虑到特定的基因变异，我们研究了居住在CAFO附近与免疫介导性疾病(IMD)之间的联系。我们的结果显示，居住在CAFO附近的人患自身免疫性疾病的风险增加，特别是类风湿性关节炎，以及对这种风险的潜在遗传影响。 自身免疫性皮肤病，如牛皮癣和湿疹，是遗传和环境因素造成的。我们分析了9060名受试者这些疾病与各种空气污染物之间的关系。我们的研究表明，某些空气污染物与自身免疫性皮肤病的发病率更高有关，强调了空气污染对这些疾病的潜在健康影响。 空气污染对除肺病和心脏病以外的疾病的影响还没有得到充分的研究。我们的发现强调了空气污染和皮肤自身免疫性疾病之间的重要联系，将其风险与吸烟进行了比较。这强调了了解空气污染对自身免疫性疾病构成的风险的重要性。 正在进行的工作包括妊娠高血压的基因图谱，结构变异的疾病图谱，以及检测基因与环境相互作用的方法的方法开发。 在另一项研究中，我们评估了环境对2型糖尿病的影响，并将它们与遗传因素进行了比较。我们的发现确定了76个重要的联系，包括与石棉和煤尘的新联系。结果显示，环境因素可能比遗传评分对糖尿病有更强的预测能力，而且结果因种族而异。这突显了对不同人群的遗传和环境影响进行广泛研究的重要性。 此外，在北卡罗来纳州的个性化环境和基因研究中，我们分析了环境暴露与心血管疾病(CVD)的关系，共有5015名参与者。通过这项全面的研究，我们发现了新的关联，如A型血(Rh-)与心脏病发作和各种油漆暴露与中风的关系。其他发现包括接触与心律失常有关的生物危险物质，以及更高的父亲教育水平，降低心血管疾病的风险。关键的危险因素是睡眠问题和吸烟。我们的发现揭示了影响心血管疾病的复杂因素以及检查多次暴露的必要性。

As co-PI of the Personalized Environment and Genes Study, I direct many scientific projects using the data. The PEGS data includes whole genome sequencing, extensive health and exposure questionnaires, GIS estimates of exposure based on residential histories, and very recently epigenetic data. This rich resource has allowed for several recently published projects. The summaries of these published projects are listed below. Asthma, a chronic breathing impairment, has a multifaceted origin involving genes and environment. One study explored genetic ties to late-onset asthma in a multiracial cohort in North Carolina, considering race and ethnicity. We found multiple genetic variations in the MHC region linked to late-onset asthma, with race-based variations in these associations. Concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) contribute to pollution and affect health. We studied the association between living near a CAFO and immune-mediated diseases (IMD), considering specific gene variants. Our results showed an increased risk of autoimmune diseases, especially rheumatoid arthritis, for those living near a CAFO and potential genetic influences on this risk. Autoimmune skin diseases like psoriasis and eczema result from genetic and environmental factors. We analyzed the connection between these diseases and various air pollutants in 9060 subjects. Our study reveals that certain air pollutants are linked to a higher prevalence of autoimmune skin disorders, emphasizing the potential health impacts of air pollution on these conditions. Air pollution's effect on diseases other than lung and heart issues is under-researched. Our findings highlight a significant link between air pollution and skin autoimmune diseases, comparing the risk to that from smoking. This stresses the significance of understanding the risks air pollution poses to autoimmune diseases. Ongoing work includes gene mapping of gestational hypertension, disease mapping with structural variants, and methods development for methods to detect gene-environment interactions. In another study, we evaluated environmental impacts on type 2 diabetes, comparing them to genetic factors. Our findings identified 76 significant links, including new associations with asbestos and coal dust. Results showed that environmental factors might have a stronger predictive power for diabetes than genetic scores, and the outcomes varied by race. This underscores the importance of broad-based studies on genetic and environmental influences across different populations. Additionally, we analyzed the relationship between environmental exposures and cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the North Carolina-based Personalized Environment and Genes Study with 5015 participants. Through this comprehensive study, we discovered new associations such as blood type A (Rh-) with heart attacks and various paint exposures with strokes. Other findings included biohazardous material exposures linked to arrhythmia and higher paternal education reducing CVD risk. Key risk factors were sleeping issues and smoking. Our findings shed light on complex factors influencing CVD and the necessity of examining multiple exposures.