Biodiversity Interventions for Well-Being (BIWE)

Natural Resources Institute Finland

Status: Active, not recruiting

Conditions: Microbial Colonization; Nature, Human; Immune System Diseases; Well-Being, Psychological

Treatments: Other: Rewilding

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06353035

346136 (Other Grant/Funding Number)

NaturalResourcesIFinland

346138 (Other Grant/Funding Number)

Details and patient eligibility

About

Biodiversity is essential for nature and human well-being. Land use has reduced biodiversity in cities, which weakens the functionality of the urban ecosystems and the well-being of citizens. This may also increase the risk of immune-mediated disorders among urban dwellers.

In Biodiversity interventions for well-being (BIWE), microbial biodiversity interventions are performed to increase biodiversity in urban built areas. Results from the intervention trials are combined with publicly available land cover and ecological data. These are analyzed from the viewpoint of shifts in ecosystems and human well-being and immune regulation, ecological quality, and urban planning.

The investigators set up an intervention study in which urban private yards are rewilded with diverse vegetation and decaying deadwood and plant residuals. The investigators aim to evaluate the effect of rewilding, and yard management practices on commensal microbiome, cortisol levels and well-being and salivary cytokine levels, and gene pathways.

Full description

Our specific aims are:

To assess if rewilding diversifies health-associated skin microbiota and is associated with salivary cytokine levels, gene pathways, cortisol levels and commensal microbiota.

Assess whether there are patterns in the microbiome associated with the salivary cytokine levels and hair cortisol levels.

Assess whether rewilding affects health and psychological measures, such as Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (SWEMWS), Depression Scale (DEPS) and Nature Relatedness Scale (NR6).

The investigators will recruit approximately 42 (21 study subjects per treatment) subjects living in a detached house or terraced house in urban areas and aged between 18-72.

The medical exclusion criteria include immunosuppressive medications, immune deficiencies, a disease affecting immune response (e.g., colitis ulcerosa, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease, diabetes), cancer diagnosis within the last year or on-going cancer treatment. Other exclusion criteria include incompetency and living outside city area.

Enrollment: 30 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 72 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Living in a detached or terraced house in urban area

Exclusion criteria

• Immunosuppressive medications
• Immune deficiencies
• a disease affecting immune response (e.g., colitis ulcerosa, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease, diabetes)
• cancer diagnosis within the last year or on-going cancer treatment
• Incompetency
• Living outside city area.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Basic Science

Allocation: Non-Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

---

30 participants in 2 patient groups

Rewilding

Experimental group

Description:

Private yards of the intervention study subjects will be modified with berry bushes, fruit trees, perennial yard plants, meadow flowers, cultivation boxes, organic mulch materials, decaying deadwood, leaf compost and organic plant growing media with high microbial diversity.

Treatment:

Other: Rewilding

Control

No Intervention group

Description:

The control group's yards will not be modified. Control group receives inorganic fertilizers, moss remover and ant control insecticide (Myrr®; active ingredient imidacloprid 0.03 % w/w).