Metagenomics analysis of biopsy-derived colonic and terminal ileal mucosa associated microbiota in healthy individuals from a population-based study

Gut mucosa microbes evolved in closest proximity with the host, developing unique phenotypes and specialized local communities. The main technology for studying the gut microbiota is currently 16S rRNA sequencing, which provides moderate-throughput data that cannot reliably resolve taxonomy beyond genus level. This study aimed at employing shotgun metagenomics to investigate biopsy-derived microbial species in healthy individuals, to explore the composition of the local microbial communities of terminal ileum and large intestine. Therefore, mucosal biopsies were collected from terminal ileum, transverse colon and rectum of 5 healthy subjects, as well as faeces samples, and shotgun metagenomics sequencing were applied for each sample.