Second Genome Partners with King's College London to Evaluate the Influence of the Microbiome in Landmark EAT Study

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Oct. 11, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Second Genome Inc., a leader in advancing human health through innovative microbiome science, announced today that it is conducting microbiome profiling and analysis for the King's College London's Enquiring About Tolerance (EAT) study in eczema and food allergies in young children. The study, the largest randomized and controlled study of food allergy prevention to date, will investigate both skin and gut microbiota of more than 300 infants at multiple points over the course of the first year of life.  

"The microbiome plays an important role in all facets of human health, and profiling children at the early stages of their life gives us unprecedented insight into how bacteria may influence allergies and inflammatory conditions," said Mohan S. Iyer, Chief Business Officer of Second Genome. "Performing microbiome profiling for King's College London and their research partners for the EAT study allows us to help them expand the knowledge base of microbial function in one of the largest, well-characterized cohorts of infants."

The EAT study aims to uncover if the early introduction of allergenic foods into the infant's diet can prevent the development of food allergies in children. Additionally, EAT will look to determine whether other main allergic conditions, such as asthma, eczema and hay fever, can be prevented by the same approach. One important research goal of the study is understanding if a relationship exists between the microbiome and these allergy conditions, which has been suggested in past research.

"There is mounting evidence that a reduction in microbial exposure in  early life is associated with an increased risk of atopic eczema and allergic disease. Most research has focused on the bacterial flora of the gut, and very little is known about the role of the skin microbiota in this context," said Carsten Flohr, M.D., of St. John's Institute of Dermatology at Guy's and St Thomas' Hospitals and King's College London, who leads the microbiome aspect of the EAT study. "Second Genome provides the expertise in and know-how in microbiome profiling to help us understand the role of the gut and skin microbiota in pediatric allergy."

The microbiome research within the EAT Study is funded by the British Skin Foundation, while the main components of the EAT Study are supported through grants from the UK Food Standards Agency, the UK National Institute for Health Research and the UK Medical Research Council. The research will be conducted by Second Genome Solutions, a team within Second Genome that provides microbiome research support to external partners.

About Second Genome Solutions

Second Genome Solutions, a world-class multi-disciplinary team within Second Genome, has completed more than 400 microbiome studies for external partners across government, academia, nutrition companies and pharmaceutical companies. The team leverages its microbiome analysis platform with its partners' specific expertise to generate insightful findings that can accelerate research programs by elucidating the role of the microbiome in human health conditions, agriculture, animal health and other industries.

About Second Genome

Second Genome's mission is to transform lives with medicines developed through innovative microbiome science. Second Genome has built a novel platform for microbiome research and drug discovery, and is engaged in active programs in multiple areas of significant unmet medical need. Please visit www.secondgenome.com for more information.

SOURCE Second Genome

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