New Approaches for Empowering Studies of Asthma in Populations of African Descent

Asthma is a complex disease where the interplay between genetic factors and environmental exposures controls susceptibility and disease progression. In the U.S., there remains an epidemic of asthma that disproportionately affects underrepresented minorities and creates a major public health burden, especially among children. Asthmatics of African ancestry continue to have more severe asthma and more severe clinical symptoms than their non-African counterparts, but few studies have focused on this vulnerable group. The purpose of this study is to expand our previous study, the Consortium on Asthma among African-ancestry Populations in the Americas (CAAPA) to integrate multi-omic resources for asthma research in African Diaspora populations and by recruiting new participants. The protocol described herein refers to the recruitment that will take place at the NIH Clinical Center as part of the expansion of CAAPA (CAAPA2).

• INCLUSION CRITERIA:

Individuals age 18 to 99 of self-identified African, African American, or African Caribbean ancestry who either have no history of asthma or wheeze (controls) or have a physician s diagnosis of asthma. This study focuses exclusively on African ancestry individuals in order to address a lack in the field of asthma research focusing on those of African ancestry despite the greater disease burden experienced by these individuals. Enrollment for the CAAPA2 study at the NIH CC will include only adults, while children will be enrolled at other CAAPA2 sites, consistent with expertise at those sites.

Exclusion criteria

• First degree relative of enrolled study participant (as determined through responses to a screening questionnaire to question on participation of parents, siblings, or half-siblings)
• Current and active smoker
• History of: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, chronic obstructive airway disease, emphysema, chronic bronchitis, lung transplant, kyphoscoliosis, sarcoidosis, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, cystic fibrosis, bronchiectasis, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn s disease, psoriasis, carcinoma of the lung, ciliary dyskinesia, lupus, or active tuberculosis
• Having any medical illnesses that would increase the risk that the participant would incur by participating in the study, interfere with the outcomes of the study, or interfere with the study procedures (evaluated using Spirometry Screener.)
• Current or previous COVID-19 infection
• Pregnant women: while study procedures are all minimal risk, the inclusion of pregnant women is not necessary to address the research questions. Additionally, pregnancy may affect some of our parameters of interest (particularly gene expression) in unpredictable ways and the size of the growing fetus may introduce mechanical challenges to optimal performance of pulmonary function tests at later stages of pregnancy. Exclusion will be based on self-report during screening.