title: All Our Babies Cohort Study: recruitment of a cohort to predict women at risk of preterm birth through the examination of gene expression profiles and the environment.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Preterm birth is the leading cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality. Risk factors for preterm birth include a personal or familial history of preterm delivery, ethnicity and low socioeconomic status yet the ability to predict preterm delivery before the onset of preterm labour evades clinical practice. Evidence suggests that genetics may play a role in the multi-factorial pathophysiology of preterm birth. The All Our Babies Study is an on-going community based longitudinal cohort study that was designed to establish a cohort of women to investigate how a women's genetics and environment contribute to the pathophysiology of preterm birth. Specifically this study will examine the predictive potential of maternal leukocytes for predicting preterm birth in non-labouring women through the examination of gene expression profiles and gene-environment interactions.
  
  
  METHODS
  Collaborations have been established between clinical lab services, the provincial health service provider and researchers to create an interdisciplinary study design for the All Our Babies Study. A birth cohort of 2000 women has been established to address this research question. Women provide informed consent for blood sample collection, linkage to medical records and complete questionnaires related to prenatal health, service utilization, social support, emotional and physical health, demographics, and breast and infant feeding. Maternal blood samples are collected in PAXgene™ RNA tubes between 18-22 and 28-32 weeks gestation for transcriptomic analyses.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The All Our Babies Study is an example of how investment in clinical-academic-community partnerships can improve research efficiency and accelerate the recruitment and data collection phases of a study. Establishing these partnerships during the study design phase and maintaining these relationships through the duration of the study provides the unique opportunity to investigate the multi-causal factors of preterm birth. The overall All Our Babies Study results can potentially lead to healthier pregnancies, mothers, infants and children.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
authors.forename: Sara K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Gracie
authors.forename: Andrew W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Lyon
authors.forename: Heather L
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Kehler
authors.forename: Craig E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Pennell
authors.forename: Siobhan M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Dolan
authors.forename: Deborah A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: McNeil
authors.forename: Jodi E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Siever
authors.forename: Sheila W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: McDonald
authors.forename: Alan D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Bocking
authors.forename: Stephen J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Lye
authors.forename: Kathy M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Hegadoren
authors.forename: David M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Olson
authors.forename: Suzanne C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Tough
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002170:Canada / Q000453:epidemiology; D002985:Clinical Protocols; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004777:Environment; D005260:Female; D005544:Forecasting / Q000379:methods; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D006801:Humans; D047928:Premature Birth / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012107:Research Design; D012307:Risk Factors