Impact of the living environment and the human microbiota on immune homeostasis and its dysregulation leading to allergy

The Karelia Allergy Study started in 1998 to characterize the prevalence and phenotype of allergies in Russian and Finnish Karelia. The key finding was that allergic symptoms and diseases were systematically more common in Finnish children and adults than in their Russian counterparts. For example, hay-fever in school-aged children is very rare in Russian Karelia, and in the early 2000s only 2% of Russian children were sensitized to birch pollen compared with 27% on the Finnish side. This project will focus on elucidating the mechanisms of gene-environment interactions within the context of allergy protection, allergy development/progression and the human microbiome in a unique Karelia Allergy Cohort.

A project investigating the relationship between the diversity of microbial species found on the skin and susceptibility to developing allergies. The geographical areas of focus are the Finnish and the Russian Karelias, which are particularly interesting due to the immense difference in the standards of living between the two sides of the Finnish-Russian border.