Microorganisms in house dust are related to adult allergy outcomes

Published: June 28, 2020

House dust contains a wide range of microorganisms that collectively comprise its microbiota. House dust microbiota can influence occupants’ health outcomes. Studies have reported that indoor microbiota from farming populations may protect against asthma and allergy in children; there are few data in adults.

In a recent article published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (JACI), Lee and colleagues conducted the largest study of house dust microbiota in an adult farming population. They used the 16s rRNA amplicon sequencing, a state-of-the-art technology, for a comprehensive characterization of bacterial communities. They examined whether bacterial communities in house dust differed by allergy outcomes, including asthma, atopic sensitization, and hay fever, in adults.

The study showed associations of adult allergic outcomes with both overall bacterial diversity and abundance of individual bacterial taxa. Exposure to more diverse bacterial communities inside homes may play a beneficial role in adult atopy and hay fever; exposure to higher or lower abundances of specific microbes may influence asthma, atopy, and hay fever.

The findings extend our understanding of the relationship between house dust microbiota and allergy outcomes from children to adults, suggesting that chronic exposure to house dust microbiota influences allergy health outcomes across the life course. Future studies using longitudinal data and metagenomics will help elucidate how timing of exposure to diverse microbial communities or specific microbiota indoors influences asthma and allergy and provide insights into mechanisms underlying potential harmful or protective associations.

The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (JACI) is an official scientific journal of the AAAAI, and is the most-cited journal in the field of allergy and clinical immunology.

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