An interventional study of Visiting a green space in Microbial Colonization, sponsored by Universiteit Antwerpen. Recruiting at 1 site in Belgium. Open to participants aged 4 Years and older, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2024-12-05.
Sponsored by Universiteit Antwerpen · Not applicable, Interventional, and Basic science
The goal of this study is to understand how visiting green areas affects the human microbiome through microbial transfer. Additionally, the project aims to understand which environmental, health and lifestyle factors can influence these microbiome changes. Participants will visit a green area, provide microbiome samples before and after the visit, and complete questionnaires related to environmental, health, lifestyle and demographic factors.
Several hypotheses propose that the modern surge in immune disorders is related to diminished contact with nature. Specifically, the Biodiversity hypothesis emphasizes that contact with natural environments enriches the human microbiome and is necessary for promoting immune balance. This project aims to investigate whether visiting green areas can contribute to changes in human microbiome composition. Additionally, the investigators aim to explore the environmental, health and lifestyle factors that can influence these microbiome changes. Adults and/or children will be asked to visit a green space (such as an urban park) and perform specific activities (such as walking or pushing a stroller) for a defined time period. Before and after this visit, swabs of their skin and nose will be collected to analyze microbiome changes. In addition, questionnaires will be administered to the participants, with the goal to align microbiome changes with environmental, health, lifestyle and demographic factors.
4,451 studies on the registry are indexed under Communicable Diseases; 521 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 150 is above the median of 121 across 2,717 interventional studies indexed under Communicable Diseases.
Browse Communicable Diseases studies →Universiteit Antwerpen is the lead sponsor of 128 studies on the registry; 28 are open to participants now.
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Inclusion criteria:
Children (min. 4 years old) and adult participants (18+) of any gender in generally good health.
No strict exclusion criteria will be set in advance.
Participants that visit a green space
Other: Visiting a green space
Participants are asked to visit a green space for a defined time period
Microbiome changes
Microbiome sequencing will be performed to assess changes in microbial community composition of nasal and skin swabs, focusing on abundances and diversity of different microorganisms and their genes
Time frame: Two time points directly before and after the intervention (on 1 day)
Specific microorganisms within the skin and nasal microbiomes
Specific microorganisms within the participants' microbiomes will be assessed through culturing of swabs and/or quantification via qPCR
Time frame: Two time points directly before and after the intervention (on 1 day)
Associations between the human microbiome and environment
Human microbiome composition and diversity (as assessed in outcome "Microbiome changes") will be correlated with the green space environment characteristics, such as the environmental (microbiome) biodiversity
Time frame: Two time points directly before and after the intervention (on 1 day)
Self-reported lifestyle
Lifestyle will be assessed using a short questionnaire to understand how it might impact the microbiome (as assessed in outcome "Microbiome changes"), reflecting lifestyle-related parameters such as weekly time spent outdoors (in hours) and frequency of exposure to green environments (e.g., once a year)
Time frame: One time point directly before or after the intervention (on 1 day)
Self-reported health
Self-reported general health will be assessed using a short questionnaire to understand how it might impact the microbiome (as assessed in outcome "Microbiome changes"), reflecting health-related parameters such as a health rating (from very poor to very good)
Time frame: One time point directly before or after the intervention (on 1 day)
Self-reported demographic information
Demographic information will be assessed using a short questionnaire to understand how it might impact the microbiome (as assessed in outcome "Microbiome changes"), reflecting demographic parameters such as age (in years), gender, and parent-child relationship (having one or more children)
Time frame: One time point directly before or after the intervention (on 1 day)
Plan to share: No
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Universiteit Antwerpen