Marked loss of diversity and pathogen domination of the gut microbiota in critically ill patients

The microbial community in Intensive Care Unit patients plays a key role in determining the balance between health and disease. Here, we describe a prospective observational study of 25 ICU patients in which serial faecal samples were subjected to shotgun metagenome sequencing, phylogenetic profiling and microbial genome analyses.重症监护室（Intensive Care Unit，ICU）患者体内的微生物群落，在调控健康与疾病的动态平衡中发挥核心作用。本文描述了一项纳入25名ICU患者的前瞻性观察研究，该研究对受试者的系列粪便样本开展了鸟枪宏基因组测序（shotgun metagenome sequencing）、系统发育谱分析（phylogenetic profiling）及微生物基因组分析（microbial genome analyses）。