Cohort Profile: The Madagascar Health and Environmental Research (MAHERY) study in north-eastern Madagascar

Abstract

Percentage of females 15-49 years old. d Percentage of reproductive-aged women reporting a pregnancy. e Percentage of reproductive-aged women lactating.

Extensive Unexplored Human Microbiome Diversity Revealed by Over 150,000 Genomes from Metagenomes Spanning Age, Geography, and Lifestyle

“…We employed a very large-scale metagenomic assembly approach to reconstruct bacterial and archaeal genomes populating the human microbiome (see STAR Methods ). From a total of 9,316 metagenomes spanning 46 datasets from multiple populations, body sites, and host ages ( Table S1 ), and an additional cohort from Madagascar ( Golden et al., 2017 ) ( STAR Methods ; Table S1 ), we reconstructed a total of 154,723 genomes (each made up of a group of clustered contigs; see STAR Methods ) using a single-sample assembly strategy tailored at maximizing the quality rather than the quantity of genomes reconstructed from each sample. The resulting catalog greatly expands the set of ∼150,000 microbial genomes publicly available (see STAR Methods ).…”

“…We enrolled, sampled, and sequenced the gut microbiome of individuals from the Madagascar Health and Environmental Research (MAHERY) study cohort that was set up in 2004 in a remote rainforest region in north-eastern Madagascar to study the impact of environmental change on human health ( Golden et al., 2017 ). The cohort includes local people (Betsimisaraka and Tsimihety ethnicity) whose diet relies heavily on self-grown rice and wild plants and meats.…”

“…Faecal samples from the Madagascar cohort were self-collected in sterile polypropylene screw cap collection tubes (Sarstedt) after defecation on the waxy side of a banana leaf, and returned to the local research team within five hours of collection ( Golden et al., 2017 ). Three ml of 97% ethanol were added to stabilize samples before storing them at −23°C within 14 days of collection.…”

Study Protocol: A Cross-Sectional Examination of Socio-Demographic and Ecological Determinants of Nutrition and Disease Across Madagascar

“…Lidocaine was applied to the arm's surface to dull the pain of needle insertion when individuals feared the pain of the blood draw. Venous blood draws were collected in one Sarstedt S-Monovette tube (5-7 mL) with lithium heparin and then processed using previously established protocols (19,20). This whole blood was used to source blood for: (i) rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for malaria (a fingerprick was used if no venous blood draw was taken) (SD Bioline Malaria Ag P.f/Pan RDT), (ii) hemoglobin status through the use of a HemoCue 201+, (iii) a thin blood smear for parasitemia counts for malaria and cell counts (iv) dried blood spots on Whatman filter paper FTA cards (two spots per individual), and (v) one drop on OmegaQuant filter paper treated with HUFASave TM .…”

Cohort Description of the Madagascar Health and Environmental Research–Antongil (MAHERY–Antongil) Study in Madagascar

“…The cohort also provided an opportunity to understand the interactive dynamics among subsistence fishing, dietary intake, nutritional status, and the incidence of intestinal parasites and malaria. To account for seasonal changes in dietary patterns and disease status, our team characterized the diets of individuals over long time scales, similar to past MAHERY cohort studies (18). In the context of the very high prevalence of stunting (linear growth retardation) in Madagascar—over 50% of children under 5 years of age are stunted (19)—understanding the relationship of diets to physical, nutritional and developmental outcomes across the lifecourse is critical.…”