exposomics
Definition
Exposomics is the comprehensive study of environmental exposures throughout an individual's lifetime and their biological effects on health and disease. It encompasses all non-genetic factors including chemical pollutants, diet, lifestyle, stress, infections, and physical environments. The exposome complements genomics by capturing the dynamic, cumulative impact of external factors on molecular pathways, gene expression, and phenotypes. Exposomics integrates data from multiple sources—biomonitoring, personal sensors, questionnaires, and geographic information—with molecular profiling techniques to identify exposure-disease associations. This field is critical for understanding complex diseases like cancer, metabolic disorders, and neurodegenerative conditions where gene-environment interactions play pivotal roles in disease etiology and progression.
Visualize exposomics in Nodes Bio
Researchers can visualize exposome-disease networks by mapping environmental exposures to affected biological pathways, genes, and phenotypes. Nodes Bio enables integration of exposure data with transcriptomics, metabolomics, and proteomics to identify molecular mediators of environmental effects. Users can construct multi-layer networks showing how specific exposures (pollutants, diet components) influence gene regulatory networks, protein interactions, and downstream disease outcomes, facilitating causal inference and biomarker discovery.
Visualization Ideas:
- Exposure-pathway-disease networks showing how environmental factors influence molecular mechanisms and phenotypes
- Multi-omics integration networks linking exposures to transcriptomic, metabolomic, and proteomic changes
- Temporal exposure networks tracking cumulative environmental effects on biological pathways over time
Example Use Case
Environmental health researchers investigating air pollution's impact on cardiovascular disease integrate particulate matter exposure data with patient transcriptomics and metabolomics profiles. They identify that chronic PM2.5 exposure correlates with dysregulation of oxidative stress pathways and inflammatory cytokine networks. By mapping these molecular changes to cardiovascular disease phenotypes, they discover novel biomarkers of pollution-induced cardiac damage and potential therapeutic targets. The network analysis reveals that specific metabolites mediate the relationship between exposure and disease, suggesting intervention points for prevention strategies.