About this Research Topic
Microbiome research is driven by an interest in the mechanism of how the microbiota impacts and respond to disease. To date, only a small percentage of the bacteria that comprise the human microbiome have been isolated, identified, and studied. More than 95% of microorganisms have not been isolated and cultured because the required growth conditions cannot be reproduced in the laboratory. However, recent technological advances in next-generation sequencing and metagenomics have made it feasible to analyze the entire human microbiome. Improvement in technology has made it possible to culture the ‘unculturable’ human microbiota, isolate, and identify the anaerobes. For example, human noroviruses have been replicated in stem cell-derived human enteroids, complex microbiota have been co-cultured in an anaerobic intestine-on-a-chip system, a novel human enteroid-anaerobe co-culture system has been used to study microbial-host interaction under physiological hypoxia, and microbial communities have been cultured from fecal samples using mini-bioreactor arrays.
The application of cutting-edge technologies, such as the anaerobic co-culture system, metagenomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics, and proteomics, have provided major insight into the complexity of relationships between the microbiome and host health and disease, and the microbiome and individual microorganisms. The roles of individual bacteria on health and disease are characterized in-vitro (e.g. co-culture system) and in-vivo (e.g. monoclonization of bacteria in germ-free mice) systems. An increased understanding of the microbiome and its functional roles in host health and diseases is fundamental to the discovery and implementation of strategies for disease diagnosis and treatment, for instance, the influence of probiotics on health, bacteria, bacteria products, or microbiome for potential improvement in the treatments of cancer, diabetes, IBD, preterm birth, depression, autism, seizures, behavior disorders, immune disorders, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and polycystic ovary syndrome.
This research topic will provide a platform for:
a) Original research articles that aim at the development and application of state-of-the-art technologies, such as in-vitro co-cultures of the anaerobic microbiome and aerobic host tissues; in-vivo monoclonization and functional assay; the ‘meta-omics’-related research that lends insight into the mechanisms of the functional roles of the microbiome on host health and disease; the interactions between the microbiome and individual bacteria; and the development of bioinformatic tools that are used for microbiome analysis.
b) Methods – articles that are novel in terms of in-vitro co-cultures of the anaerobic microbiome; in-vivo monoclonization and functional assay; the application of state-of-the-art ‘meta-omics’-related research and image technologies, such as metagenomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics, and proteomics; and development of analytical tools.
c) Reviews or Mini-Reviews - that highlight the recent advances in the development of technologies and analytical tools over the decades and provide a perspective and direction for future studies based on current research gaps.
d) Perspectives – which are articles that provide an overview of the specific techniques and analytical tools, highlights how the techniques and analytical tools are providing insights into disease, and discuss current advances, as well as future directions.
e) Brief Research Reports – present the preliminary technical developments with interesting data.
The application of cutting-edge technologies, such as the anaerobic co-culture system, metagenomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics, and proteomics, have provided major insight into the complexity of relationships between the microbiome and host health and disease, and the microbiome and individual microorganisms. The roles of individual bacteria on health and disease are characterized in-vitro (e.g. co-culture system) and in-vivo (e.g. monoclonization of bacteria in germ-free mice) systems. An increased understanding of the microbiome and its functional roles in host health and diseases is fundamental to the discovery and implementation of strategies for disease diagnosis and treatment, for instance, the influence of probiotics on health, bacteria, bacteria products, or microbiome for potential improvement in the treatments of cancer, diabetes, IBD, preterm birth, depression, autism, seizures, behavior disorders, immune disorders, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and polycystic ovary syndrome.
This research topic will provide a platform for:
a) Original research articles that aim at the development and application of state-of-the-art technologies, such as in-vitro co-cultures of the anaerobic microbiome and aerobic host tissues; in-vivo monoclonization and functional assay; the ‘meta-omics’-related research that lends insight into the mechanisms of the functional roles of the microbiome on host health and disease; the interactions between the microbiome and individual bacteria; and the development of bioinformatic tools that are used for microbiome analysis.
b) Methods – articles that are novel in terms of in-vitro co-cultures of the anaerobic microbiome; in-vivo monoclonization and functional assay; the application of state-of-the-art ‘meta-omics’-related research and image technologies, such as metagenomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics, and proteomics; and development of analytical tools.
c) Reviews or Mini-Reviews - that highlight the recent advances in the development of technologies and analytical tools over the decades and provide a perspective and direction for future studies based on current research gaps.
d) Perspectives – which are articles that provide an overview of the specific techniques and analytical tools, highlights how the techniques and analytical tools are providing insights into disease, and discuss current advances, as well as future directions.
e) Brief Research Reports – present the preliminary technical developments with interesting data.
Keywords: Microbiome, Health, Disease, Techniques, Analytical Tool
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
