Linking the bed dust microbiome with environmental factors and child respiratory health

Humans spend up to 90% of their time indoors and are exposed to a significant number of microbes in their homes, which can have important implications for their health.

This study focused on analysing the influence of environmental factors on microbiome diversity and abundance in bed dust and linking the exposure to dust bacteria with asthma.

A total of 90 dust samples were collected from homes of asthmatic patients (n = 59) and controls (n = 31) aged 5-18 years. The bacterial fraction of the microbiome was analysed using 16S rRNA gene high-throughput sequencing on the Illumina MiSeq platform and downstream analyses in QIIME2 and R. Microbiome profiles were associated with asthma and relevant environmental and household data.

Higher bacterial β-diversity in the environment was shown to be inversely associated with asthma (p = 0.009). Also, living environment (p = 0.002), housing type (p = 0.004), presence of pets in the household (p = 0.001), and cleaning practices (p = 0.006 for dusting and p = 0.011 for vacuuming) were prominent environmental factors affecting the bed dust microbiome.

Our results suggest significant differences in bacterial community composition between individuals with and without asthma and the interaction between indoor microbiome and asthma is mediated by environmental factors in the household.