Sleep and Diet Identified as Key Drivers of Immunome Variation: Study

A new population-based study has highlighted how everyday lifestyle factors and environmental exposures shape the human immune system. Researchers analyzed data from 1,001 participants in the Human Phenome Atlas (THPA) cohort to explore how external exposures influence variations in the immunome, which refers to the collection of immune cells and their functions. The findings suggest that lifestyle and environmental factors account for a measurable portion of immune system differences between individuals.

The researchers found that exposures explained 10.74% of the variation in immune system characteristics. Through systematic analysis, they identified 55 immunophenotypes—distinct immune cell traits—linked to 20 individual exposures and three combined exposure patterns. Among these factors, sleep and diet emerged as the most influential lifestyle exposures affecting immune function.

Sleep patterns were found to influence the proportions of innate immune cells, while diet affected the expression of key immune cell surface proteins. The study also revealed that different sleep behaviors may affect immune responses in distinct ways. For example, short-term late sleep onset was associated with increased secretion of IL-1β, an inflammatory molecule, whereas long-term late sleep patterns were linked to chronic inflammation accompanied by broader metabolic changes.

Further analysis showed that the biological pathways connecting lifestyle factors and immune responses differ depending on the exposure. The effects of sleep on immunity were primarily mediated through changes in the transcriptome, which reflects gene activity. In contrast, dietary influences were mainly associated with the metabolome, the collection of small molecules involved in metabolism.

Using these insights, researchers developed transcriptomic and metabolomic indexes that combine molecular signals linked to immune responses. These indexes may help reflect overall immune health and identify risks for chronic diseases, potentially offering new tools for future health monitoring and personalized disease prevention strategies.

REFERENCE: Zhao, Y., et al. (2025). The Influence of Sleep and Diet on Human Peripheral Immunity and Chronic Health Conditions. Research. DOI: 10.34133/research.1081. https://spj.science.org/doi/10.34133/research.1081