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FEATURE ARTICLE: Declining biodiversity could be contributing to the rise of asthma
and allergies
Alison Caldwell reported this story on Tuesday, May 8, 2012 18:45:00
MARK COLVIN: A new study from Finland shows that lower biodiversity may be
contributing to the rise of asthma, allergies and other inflammatory diseases among
people living in cities.
The study found that individuals living on farms or near forests had more diverse
bacteria on their skin.
They also had lower allergen sensitivity than people living in areas with less
environmental biodiversity, such as cities.
Alison Caldwell reports.
ALISON CALDWELL: Australia has one of the highest incidences of allergies in the
world. Two million Australians, or one in ten people suffers from asthma.
A new study from Finland has found that declining biodiversity may be contributing to
the rise of asthma, allergies and other inflammatory diseases among people living in
cities.
Lead author Dr Ilkka Hanski is a population ecologist with the University of
Helsinki's Department of Biosciences.
ILKKA HANSKI: Living in a more natural environment with more vegetative habitats
within, we measured the environment up to three kilometres from the home.
If you are living in a more natural environment your probability of being allergic is
less than if you are living in a more built area.
ALISON CALDWELL: The study looked at 118 teenagers living in eastern Finland.
It found that those living on farms or near forests had more diverse bacteria on
their skin and lower allergen sensitivity compared to those living in areas with less
environmental biodiversity, such as urban areas or near bodies of water.
Furthermore, Dr Hanski says a particular class of bacteria known as a
gammaproteobacteria formed less diverse populations on the skin of allergen-sensitive
individuals than on healthy participants.
ILKKA HANSKI: In addition to describing the land use in the surroundings of their
home, we also surveyed the plant species richness, how many plant species of their
yard.
We also sampled the skin of these individuals as an example, as a path of (inaudible)
of beneficial microbial bacteria community on their skin and in their respiratory
tract.
And so we were also interested in examining whether the composition of the bacteria
or community on the skin was related to whether they were healthy or allergic. And
indeed there was a very strong association involving one particular class of bacteria
called gammaproteobacteria.
We found that individuals which had a higher diversity of these gammaproteobacteria
on their skin, they were more likely to be healthy than individuals which had a lower
diversity of these gammaproteobacteria on their skin.
ALISON CALDWELL: Dr Hanski believes society's obsession with cleanliness may have
something to do with the rise in allergies.
ILKKA HANSKI: If particularly young children are living under too hygienic
conditions, this applies both to home and now based on our results also the environment
which they are living, if the conditions are too deprived of microbial populations and
communities this is not good for the development of our immune system.
If it doesn't develop normally then the consequences will be these various types of
diseases that we have talked about.
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