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Review
. 2017 Aug 4;1(1):85-95.
doi: 10.5414/ALX01455E. eCollection 2017.

GINIplus and LISAplus - Design and selected results of two German birth cohorts about natural course of atopic diseases and their determinants

J Heinrich  1 , I Brüske  1 , C Cramer  2 , U Hoffmann  3 , M Schnappinger  1 , B Schaaf  4 , A von Berg  5 , D Berdel  5 , U Krämer  2 , I Lehmann  6 , O Herbarth  7 , M Borte  8 , A Grübl  2 , C P Bauer  2 , C Beckmann  4 , H Behrendt  9 , J Ring  10 , S Koletzko  11
Affiliations
Review

GINIplus and LISAplus - Design and selected results of two German birth cohorts about natural course of atopic diseases and their determinants

J Heinrich et al. Allergol Select. .

Abstract

The increasing prevalence of asthma, hay fever, and allergic sensitization in Western Germany after east-west division in 1949 and their rapid increase in East German children after re-unification in 1990 are strong indications for the role of life-style and/or environmental factors in the development of atopic diseases. Obviously, the perinatal period is crucial for priming the immune system. Therefore, explorations of determinants of atopic diseases need pregnancy or birth cohorts as the most appropriate epidemiological study designs. This review presents the design and selected results of the two German birth cohorts GINIplus and LISAplus. GINIplus and LISAplus recruited 5.991 and 3.097 healthy, term newborns, respectively, from Munich, Wesel, Leipzig, and Bad Honnef. Approximately 55% could be followed for the first 10 years. We analyzed the natural course of atopic diseases and the role of life-style, environmental, and genetic factors for disease onset, intermediate phenotypes, and genes involved in detoxification and oxidative stress. The results of these two large birth cohorts contributed substantially to the understanding of atopic diseases and their determinants.

Keywords: East-West-Germany; allergy; children; environmental factors; epidemiology; genes; lifestyle.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.. Study structure and response of GINIplus (A) and LISAplus (B).
Figure 2.
Figure 2.. Age-related course of allergic diseases during the first 10 years of life of 5,991 (GINIplus cohort) and 3,097 (LISAplus cohort) children.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.. Age-related increase in allergic sensitization from the 6th to the 10th year of life in GINIplus and LISAplus children (RAST). Airborne allergens: grass, birch, mugwort, rye, Cladosporium herbarum, house dust mite, dog, and cat allergens. Food allergens: egg, cow’s milk, fish, wheat, peanut, soy.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.. Regional differences in the frequency of atopic diseases and allergic sensitization in 10-year-old children. Results of the GINIplus and LISAplus studies (combined).
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Republished from

  • pp. 20-31

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