Impact of occupational pesticide exposure on the human gut microbiome

The rising use of pesticides in modern agriculture has led to a shift in disease burden in which exposure to these chemicals plays an increasingly important role. The human gut microbiome, which is partially responsible for the biotransformation of xenobiotics, is also known to promote biotransformation of environmental pollutants. Understanding the effects of occupational pesticide exposure on the gut microbiome can thus provide valuable insights into the mechanisms underlying the impact of pesticide exposure on health. Here we investigate the impact of occupational pesticide exposure on human gut microbiome composition in 7198 participants from the Dutch Microbiome Project of the Lifelines Study. We used job-exposure matrices in combination with occupational codes to retrieve categorical and cumulative estimates of occupational exposures to general pesticides, herbicides, insecticides and fungicides. Approximately 4% of our cohort was occupationally exposed to at least one class of pesticides, with predominant exposure to multiple pesticide classes. Most participants reported long-term employment, suggesting a cumulative profile of exposure. We demonstrate that contact with insecticides, fungicides and a general “all pesticides” class was consistently associated with changes in the gut microbiome, showing significant associations with decreased alpha diversity and a differing beta diversity. We also report changes in the abundance of 39 different bacterial taxa upon exposure to the different pesticide classes included in this study. Together, the extent of statistically relevant associations between gut microbial changes and pesticide exposure in our findings highlights the impact of these compounds on the human gut microbiome.</p

Impact of occupational pesticide exposure on the human gut microbiome

The rising use of pesticides in modern agriculture has led to a shift in disease burden in which exposure to these chemicals plays an increasingly important role. The human gut microbiome, which is partially responsible for the biotransformation of xenobiotics, is also known to promote biotransformation of environmental pollutants. Understanding the effects of occupational pesticide exposure on the gut microbiome can thus provide valuable insights into the mechanisms underlying the impact of pesticide exposure on health. Here we investigate the impact of occupational pesticide exposure on human gut microbiome composition in 7198 participants from the Dutch Microbiome Project of the Lifelines Study. We used job-exposure matrices in combination with occupational codes to retrieve categorical and cumulative estimates of occupational exposures to general pesticides, herbicides, insecticides and fungicides. Approximately 4% of our cohort was occupationally exposed to at least one class of pesticides, with predominant exposure to multiple pesticide classes. Most participants reported long-term employment, suggesting a cumulative profile of exposure. We demonstrate that contact with insecticides, fungicides and a general “all pesticides” class was consistently associated with changes in the gut microbiome, showing significant associations with decreased alpha diversity and a differing beta diversity. We also report changes in the abundance of 39 different bacterial taxa upon exposure to the different pesticide classes included in this study. Together, the extent of statistically relevant associations between gut microbial changes and pesticide exposure in our findings highlights the impact of these compounds on the human gut microbiome.</p

Urbanization gradient, diet, and gut microbiota in Sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review

IntroductionAs Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) undergoes rapid urbanization changes in diet and lifestyle have contributed to a rise in non-communicable diseases (NCDs) across the region. Changes in gut microbiota which play an important role in human health may be an underlying driving factor. While evidence suggests that the gut microbiota differs between the extreme levels of economic development (least vs highly developed), it is not well-established which factors along the urbanization gradient are most influential, especially for SSA. This systematic review analyzed published articles from SSA countries that examined the differences in the composition and diversity of gut microbiota along the urbanization gradient. The findings of this review have important implications for understanding the impact of urbanization on human health in the SSA.MethodsPeer-reviewed articles that examined the link between the urbanization gradient, dietary patterns, and gut microbiota using culture-independent techniques were included in the review.ResultsA total of 3,265 studies were identified and screened. Eighty-nine (89) studies underwent full-text review, and 23 studies were extracted and included for final analysis. Among these studies, it was observed that hunter-gatherers had high alpha diversity (within-person variation) and beta diversity (between-person variation) in their gut microbiota compared to rural and urban residents in SSA. However, there were inconsistent differences between rural and urban at the individual taxa levels, potentially due to limited statistical power and large variability in the study techniques and designs. Similarly, there were no clear differences in the relative abundance of genera across the urbanization gradient. Additionally, both diet and intestinal parasites were associated with the composition and diversity of the gut microbiota.ConclusionThe review revealed there are variations in both alpha and beta diversity of the gut microbiota across the urbanization gradient with a higher diversity observed in rural areas. However, we did not observe significant differences in the relative abundance at phyla or genus levels consistently across the urbanization gradient. Moreover, our findings suggest that the mode of subsistence, diet, and intestinal parasites play a role in shaping the composition and diversity of the gut microbiota in SSA.Systematic review registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42021251006, identifier CRD42021251006

Tracking Mental Wellbeing of Dutch Adolescents During the First Year of the COVID-19 Lockdown: A Longitudinal Study

Purpose: Adolescents might be susceptible to the effects of the COVID-19 lockdown. We assessed changes in mental wellbeing throughout the first year of the pandemic and compared these with prepandemic levels. Methods: This five-wave prospective study among Dutch adolescents aged 12–17 years used data collected before the pandemic (n = 224) (T0), in May (T1), July (T2), and October 2020 (T3), and in February 2021 (T4). Generalized estimating equations were used to assess the association between stringency of the lockdown with mental wellbeing. Results: Adolescents had a lower life satisfaction during the first full lockdown (T1) [adjusted β: −0.36, 95% confidence interval (CI): −0.58 to −0.13], during the partial lockdown (T3) (adjusted β: −0.37, 95% CI: −0.63 to −0.12), and during the second full lockdown (T4) (adjusted β: −0.79, 95% CI: −1.07 to −0.52) compared to before the pandemic (T0). Adolescents reported more internalizing symptoms during only the second full lockdown (T4) (adjusted β: 2.58, 95% CI: 0.41–4.75). During the pandemic [at T1 (adjusted β: 0.29, 95% CI: 0.20–0.38), T2 (adjusted β: 0.36, 95% CI: 0.26–0.46), T3 (adjusted β: 0.33, 95% CI: 0.22–0.45), and T4 (adjusted β: 0.20, 95% CI: 0.07–0.34)], adolescents reported a better psychosomatic health, partly attributable to less trouble falling asleep (p < .01). Discussion: The COVID-19 lockdown measures have had both a negative and positive impact on mental wellbeing of Dutch adolescents. However, mental wellbeing was most impacted during the second full lockdown compared to before the pandemic

Defining and Measuring Resilience in Children with a Chronic Disease: a Scoping Review

UNLABELLED: More than 25% of all children grow up with a chronic disease. They are at higher risk for developmental and psychosocial problems. However, children who function resiliently manage to adapt positively to these challenges. We aim to systematically review how resilience is defined and measured in children with a chronic disease. A search of PubMed, Cochrane, Embase, and PsycINFO was performed on December 9, 2022, using resilience, disease, and child/adolescent as search terms. Two reviewers independently screened articles for inclusion according to predefined criteria. Extraction domains included study characteristics, definition, and instruments assessing resilience outcomes, and resilience factors. Fifty-five out of 8766 articles were identified as relevant. In general, resilience was characterized as positive adaptation to adversity. The included studies assessed resilience by the outcomes of positive adaptation, or by resilience factors, or both. We categorized the assessed resilience outcomes into three groups: personal traits, psychosocial functioning, and disease-related outcomes. Moreover, myriad of resilience factors were measured, which were grouped into internal resilience factors (cognitive, social, and emotional competence factors), disease-related factors, and external factors (caregiver factors, social factors, and contextual factors). Our scoping review provides insight into the definitions and instruments used to measure resilience in children with a chronic disease. More knowledge is needed on which resilience factors are related to positive adaptation in specific illness-related challenges, which underlying mechanisms are responsible for this positive adaptation, and how these underlying mechanisms interact with one another. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s42844-023-00092-2

Defining and Measuring Resilience in Children with a Chronic Disease: a Scoping Review

UNLABELLED: More than 25% of all children grow up with a chronic disease. They are at higher risk for developmental and psychosocial problems. However, children who function resiliently manage to adapt positively to these challenges. We aim to systematically review how resilience is defined and measured in children with a chronic disease. A search of PubMed, Cochrane, Embase, and PsycINFO was performed on December 9, 2022, using resilience, disease, and child/adolescent as search terms. Two reviewers independently screened articles for inclusion according to predefined criteria. Extraction domains included study characteristics, definition, and instruments assessing resilience outcomes, and resilience factors. Fifty-five out of 8766 articles were identified as relevant. In general, resilience was characterized as positive adaptation to adversity. The included studies assessed resilience by the outcomes of positive adaptation, or by resilience factors, or both. We categorized the assessed resilience outcomes into three groups: personal traits, psychosocial functioning, and disease-related outcomes. Moreover, myriad of resilience factors were measured, which were grouped into internal resilience factors (cognitive, social, and emotional competence factors), disease-related factors, and external factors (caregiver factors, social factors, and contextual factors). Our scoping review provides insight into the definitions and instruments used to measure resilience in children with a chronic disease. More knowledge is needed on which resilience factors are related to positive adaptation in specific illness-related challenges, which underlying mechanisms are responsible for this positive adaptation, and how these underlying mechanisms interact with one another. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s42844-023-00092-2