Mount Sinai researchers have been awarded $12 million over 5 years by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to create a center to elucidate novel causes of, and contributing factors to, food allergies and atopic dermatitis, according to a news release.

The Systems Biology of Early Atopy (SunBEAm) Analysis and Bioinformatics Center intends to develop a better understanding of allergy development. The center will apply systems biology to identify early-life markers of risk for food allergies and atopic dermatitis, as well as biological pathways underlying these common conditions, through the profiling and analysis of longitudinal multi-omics data from a multicenter pre-birth cohort of 2,500 children.

Food allergies and atopic dermatitis affect nearly 8 percent and 20 percent of children, respectively, according to Mount Sinai. Food allergies are frequently preceded by atopic dermatitis, suggesting shared risk factors and overlapping pathobiology.

“Individuals with food allergies are at daily risk for potentially life-threatening conditions, including hives, respiratory distress, and/or anaphylaxis following ingestion of a food antigen to which they are sensitized. And for those suffering from atopic dermatitis, they live with chronically inflamed skin that can cover a significant proportion of their bodies,” Supinda Bunyavanich, MD, MPH, MPhil, Mount Sinai Professor in Allergy and Systems Biology and Principal Investigator of the Center, said in the news release.

"This funding enables us to create a center that will make a significant impact on allergy research. A systems biology approach where the biology of these common conditions is investigated comprehensively at several levels may help identify new knowledge about the development of allergies, ultimately helping us to improve the prevention, diagnosis, and clinical management of food allergies and atopic dermatitis," said Dr. Bunyavanich.

The SunBEAm Analysis and Bioinformatics Center (NIH grant number 1UM1AI173380) includes investigators from Mount Sinai, Johns Hopkins, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Northwestern, and National Jewish Health. The SunBEAm birth cohort is a collaborative effort by investigators from 12 sites across the United States who are enrolling families for participation in this cohort study that follows parents and children from before birth through the child’s third birthday. SunBEAm is supported by the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, and spearheaded by the Consortium for Food Allergy Research.