The Exposome and Its Impact on Health and Disease

The exposome, a term introduced by Christopher Wild, refers to all environmental exposures affecting an individual from conception onward. It was later conceptually divided into 3 partially overlapping domains, according to the nature and origin of exposures. Since its initial definition, the exposome has attracted increasing scientific interest, and mounting evidence has correlated it to a wide range of diseases, establishing that disease development consists of an intricate interplay between the endogenous-genomic background and the environment. In this review, we introduce the concept as well as elements and importance of the exposome, examine the methodologic approaches that are being employed in exposomics research, discuss challenges related to its study, and report several global exposome-related initiatives and their goals. It is increasingly clear that exposures significantly influence disease, highlighting the need for exposome research to match the scope and rigor of the Human Genome Project. This approach could help us better understand how the environment affects health, fully realize the exposome's potential in medical science, and advance the development of sophisticated, personalized medicine.