Abstract:Considering the innovative nature of the approach to human exposome, we present the state of the art of studies on exposome, and discuss current challenges and perspectives in this area. Several reading and discussion activities were conducted by the Expossoma e Saúde do Trabalhador (eXsat – Group Exposome and Worker’s Health), with systematization of the literature in the area published between January 2005 and January 2017, available in the databases PubMed and Web of Science. This comment brings a thematic … Show more
“…This need is more pronounced in the case of a relatively recent concept such as the exposome 28 – 31 . Importantly, the sub-theme of understanding the limitations of exposome research has also emerged, in line with previously published work 32 , 33 .…”
The exposome is a complex scientific field that has enjoyed consistent growth over the last two decades, defined as the composite of every exposure to which an individual is subjected from conception to death. The study of the exposome requires consideration of both the nature of those exposures and their changes over time, and as such necessitates high quality data and software solutions. As the exposome is both a broad and a recent concept, it is challenging to define or to introduce in a structured way. Thus, an approach to assist with clear definitions and a structured framework is needed for the wider scientific and public communication. Results: A set of 14 personas were developed through three focus groups and a series of 14 semi-structured interviews. The focus groups defined the broad themes specific to exposome research, while the sub-themes emerged to saturation via the interviews process. Personas are imaginary individuals that represent segments/groups of real people within a population. Within the context of the HEAP project, the created personas represented both exposome data generators and users. Conclusion: Personas have been implemented successfully in computer science, improving the understanding of human-computer interaction. The creation of personas specific to exposome research adds a useful tool supporting education and outreach activities for a complex scientific field.
“…This need is more pronounced in the case of a relatively recent concept such as the exposome 28 – 31 . Importantly, the sub-theme of understanding the limitations of exposome research has also emerged, in line with previously published work 32 , 33 .…”
The exposome is a complex scientific field that has enjoyed consistent growth over the last two decades, defined as the composite of every exposure to which an individual is subjected from conception to death. The study of the exposome requires consideration of both the nature of those exposures and their changes over time, and as such necessitates high quality data and software solutions. As the exposome is both a broad and a recent concept, it is challenging to define or to introduce in a structured way. Thus, an approach to assist with clear definitions and a structured framework is needed for the wider scientific and public communication. Results: A set of 14 personas were developed through three focus groups and a series of 14 semi-structured interviews. The focus groups defined the broad themes specific to exposome research, while the sub-themes emerged to saturation via the interviews process. Personas are imaginary individuals that represent segments/groups of real people within a population. Within the context of the HEAP project, the created personas represented both exposome data generators and users. Conclusion: Personas have been implemented successfully in computer science, improving the understanding of human-computer interaction. The creation of personas specific to exposome research adds a useful tool supporting education and outreach activities for a complex scientific field.
“…The inclusion of all exposures suffered by informal workers, including internal and external factors, must be considered for assessing their impact on health. The exposome—all human exposures from conception to death—could, in the future, offer a cutting-edge approach to evaluating occupational and environmental exposures that cause chronic diseases [ 155 , 156 , 157 , 158 , 159 ]. Targeted and untargeted exposomic biomonitoring of trace elements and the toxic substances in biological fluids is of fundamental significance for human health assessment.…”
Section: Identification Of Osh Aspects Of Decent Workmentioning
The 2030 United Nations Goal 8 for sustainable development focuses on decent work. There is utility in identifying the occupational safety and health aspects of Goal 8, as they pertain to the four pillars of decent work: job creation, social protection, rights of workers, and social dialogue. A workgroup of the International Commission on Occupational Health and collaborators addressed the issue of decent work and occupational safety and health (OSH) with the objective of elaborating a framework for guidance for practitioners, researchers, employers, workers, and authorities. This article presents that framework, which is based on an examination of the literature and the perspectives of the workgroup. The framework encompasses the intersection of the pillars of decent (employment creation, social protection, rights of workers, and social dialogue) work with new and emerging hazards and risks related to various selected determinants: new technologies and new forms of work; demographics (aging and gender); globalization; informal work; migration; pandemics; and OSH policies and climate change. The OSH field will need an expanded focus to address the future of decent work. This focus should incorporate the needs of workers and workforces in terms of their well-being. The framework identifies a starting point for the OSH community to begin to promote decent work.
“…The body of global literature on the exposome has been growing in the past years, yet with remarkable nuances given the embryonic nature of the concept [8]. Numerous reviews and commentaries/perspectives on the human exposome and its utility exist, either favoring or challenging its implementation [5,6,[9][10][11][12][13][14][15]. Currently, exposome studies focus on either a health outcome, such as cancer [16,17], diabetes [18], gastrointestinal diseases ( [19,20], kidney stones [21], skin aging [22], Parkinson disease [23], reproductive health [24][25][26][27], or on various exposure(s)/outcome(s) metrics used in one or more domains of the exposome [28][29][30][31][32][33].…”
Section: This Article Is Part Of the Topical Collection On Human Healmentioning
Embraced as a breaking through methodological framework, the exposome is accompanied by novel exposure assessment methods and data processing tools or models. However, systematic mapping of the landscape of exposome studies, including their characteristics, components, tools and language has not been done so far. We conducted a scoping review to answer the question: "Which main domains of the human exposome have been included in the literature and which metrics of exposure(s)/ outcome(s) have been used?" We performed a comprehensive search of human studies containing the word "exposom*" and published up to March 8, 2019. We screened 1133 records and 82 studies were included in the analysis. Most studies took place in Europe. Data analysis showed the non-systematic use of the exposome term. Most studies had a longitudinal design (n = 30, 37%), were conducted on adults (n = 40, 51%), and had a clearly defined health outcome in methodology (n = 48, 61%). Omics tools, such as metabolomics were used in 38 studies (49%), while environment-wide association analysis was used in 9 studies (11%). Thirty-seven (48%) studies included all three exposome domains (general external, specific external and internal) while 33 (42%) studies included two. Despite the large number of environmental components that comprise each of the exposome domains, only a subset has been currently studied. An optimized consideration of the components from all exposome domains, as well as the standardization of the exposure and outcome assessment methods is warranted to advance the utility of the human exposome concept.
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