Studying Intestinal Microbiomes by Nanopore Sequencing

The microbiome -- the commensal microbes that colonize the human skin, mouth, gut, and urinogenital tract -- play an important but poorly characterized role in human health and disease. Microbial communities in the gut are of particular interest: they impact not only digestion, but also our immune systems and even our mental health! Part of the challenge in characterizing this role is the immense diversity of these microbial communities -- the microbes present in an individual's large intestine seem to be impacted by heredity, environment, diet, disease, and other factors. Thus, simply surveying these communities from healthy individuals to determine which microbes are present, and in what proportions, provides useful data as to community structure and may allow us to infer the metabolic activity of these communities. Ultimately, understanding the structure and function of these commensal microbial communities may allow us to alter them rationally, leading to better health outcomes.

微生物组——即定殖于人体皮肤、口腔、肠道与泌尿生殖道的共生微生物——在人类健康与疾病中发挥着重要但尚未被充分阐明的作用。肠道微生物群落尤其受到学界关注：它们不仅影响消化功能，还对人体免疫系统乃至精神健康均有重要作用。阐明这类微生物组的作用机制所面临的挑战之一，在于这些微生物群落极高的物种多样性——人体大肠内的微生物组成似乎会受到遗传、环境、饮食、疾病及其他多种因素的影响。因此，仅通过对健康个体的这类群落进行采样分析，明确其中存在的微生物类群及其相对丰度，即可为解析群落结构提供有效数据，并帮助我们推断这些群落的代谢活性。最终，阐明这类共生微生物群落的结构与功能，可帮助我们实现对其的精准调控，从而改善人体健康结局。