Microbiome, Human

Previous research has shown that some patients with atopic eczema have specific self-reactive antibodies, known as IgE autoantibodies, that react to their own skin cells, referred to as "self-reactive antibodies" or "autoantibodies". It is not yet known when and how these self-reactive antibodies develop, so this is what we aim to investigate. This study aims to examine the presence of self-reactive antibodies at birth. In other words, the investigators want to study the earliest stage of developing antibodies that target the body's own skin cells. Additionally, factors that contribute to the development of these self-reactive antibodies will be explored as well as the correlation with the development of atopic eczema. The study will involve newborns who are at an increased risk of developing atopic eczema due to a family history of asthma, hay fever, or atopic eczema. There will also be a control group of newborns without these characteristics. The study's approach is to examine a portion of the umbilical cord blood, which is routinely collected after birth, to investigate self-reactive antibodies. The goal is to determine whether these self-reactive antibodies are linked to the development of atopic eczema in the first two years of life. For this purpose, follow-ups will be conducted at the ages of 6, 12, and 24 months. This study will contribute to an increased understanding of the prevalence of self-reactive antibodies and the factors influencing their development. Moreover, the study will determine whether these antibodies play a role in the prevention of and/or serve as predictive factors for the development of atopic eczema.

This study is a single center randomized control trial of a probiotic based intervention in pregnancies complicated by gestational diabetes. A healthy gut microbiome is now recognized as a key component of human health and dysbiosis of the gut microbiome, including lack of diversity, is believed to contribute to the development of many diseases and alter glucose control. The study aims to explore whether this probiotic intervention will improve glucose control and change the gut microbiome. Participants may be enrolled and randomized after diagnosis of gestational diabetes between 24 and 31 weeks gestation. 115 participants will be randomized in a ratio of 2 in the probiotic intervention group to 1 in the placebo group. Participants will stop taking the intervention at 6 weeks postpartum. At this time, they will be unblinded and offered the option of participating in an open-label extension of the intervention until 6 months postpartum.

The goal of this observational study is to learn about the effects of early-life adversity (ELA) on the composition of children's microbiome and on their psychosocial functioning. The main questions it aims to answer are: * Do children who have experienced ELA have lower gut microbial diversity and/or an altered gut microbial composition? * Do these microbiome alterations correlate with adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes, including increased levels of stress, social and/or affective problems?