Characterization of the external exposome and its contribution to the clinical respiratory and early biological effects in children: The PROMESA cohort study protocol

• Published in: PloS one 2023-01, Vol.18 (1), p.e0278836
• Main Authors: Marín, Diana, Orozco, Luz Yaneth, Narváez, Diana María, Ortiz-Trujillo, Isabel Cristina, Molina, Francisco José, Ramos, Carlos Daniel, Rodriguez-Villamizar, Laura, Bangdiwala, Shrikant I, Morales, Olga, Cuellar, Martha, Hernández, Luis Jorge, Henao, Enrique Antonio, Lopera, Verónica, Corredor, Andrea, Toro, María Victoria, Groot, Helena, Villamil-Osorio, Milena, Muñoz, Diego Alejandro, Hincapié, Roberto Carlos, Amaya, Ferney, Oviedo, Ana Isabel, López, Lucelly, Morales-Betancourt, Ricardo, Marín-Ochoa, Beatriz Elena, Sánchez-García, Oscar Eduardo, Marín, Juan Sebastián, Abad, José Miguel, Toro, Julio Cesar, Pinzón, Eliana, Builes, Juan José, Rueda, Zulma Vanessa
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Air Pollutants - analysis; Air Pollutants - toxicity; Air pollution; Air Pollution - analysis; Asthma; Asthma - chemically induced; Asthma - epidemiology; Bayes Theorem; Bayesian analysis; Biological damage; Biological effects; Biology and Life Sciences; Biomarkers; Child; Children; Children & youth; Cohort analysis; Cohort Studies; Damage; Disease; Dispersion models; DNA damage; Earth Sciences; Ecology and Environmental Sciences; Environmental Exposure - adverse effects; Environmental Exposure - analysis; Environmental Pollutants; Ethical standards; Exposome; Exposure; Genotoxicity; Health aspects; Health insurance; Humans; Land use; Machine learning; Mathematical models; Medicine and Health Sciences; Mouth Mucosa - chemistry; Neuromuscular diseases; Nitrogen dioxide; Outdoor air quality; Particulate emissions; Particulate matter; Particulate Matter - analysis; Pediatrics; People and Places; Pollutants; Regression analysis; Regression models; Sea level; Social Sciences; Statistical analysis; Statistical methods; Study Protocol; Toxicity; VOCs; Volatile organic compounds
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0278836

Air pollution contains a mixture of different pollutants from multiple sources. However, the interaction of these pollutants with other environmental exposures, as well as their harmful effects on children under five in tropical countries, is not well known. This study aims to characterize the external exposome (ambient and indoor exposures) and its contribution to clinical respiratory and early biological effects in children. A cohort study will be conducted on children under five (n = 500) with a one-year follow-up. Enrolled children will be followed monthly (phone call) and at months 6 and 12 (in person) post-enrolment with upper and lower Acute Respiratory Infections (ARI) examinations, asthma development, asthma control, and genotoxic damage. The asthma diagnosis will be pediatric pulmonologist-based and a standardized protocol will be used. Exposure, effect, and susceptibility biomarkers will be measured on buccal cells samples. For environmental exposures PM2.5 will be sampled, and questionnaires, geographic information, dispersion models and Land Use Regression models for PM2.5 and NO2 will be used. Different statistical methods that include Bayesian and machine learning techniques will be used for the ambient and indoor exposures-and outcomes. This study was approved by the ethics committee at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana. To estimate i) The toxic effect of particulate matter transcending the approach based on pollutant concentration levels; ii) The risk of developing an upper and lower ARI, based on different exposure windows; iii) A baseline of early biological damage in children under five, and describe its progression after a one-year follow-up; and iv) How physical and chemical PM2.5 characteristics influence toxicity and children's health.