Where next for microbiome research?

PLoS Biol. 2015 Jan 20;13(1):e1002050. doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.1002050. eCollection 2015 Jan.

Abstract

The development of high-throughput sequencing technologies has transformed our capacity to investigate the composition and dynamics of the microbial communities that populate diverse habitats. Over the past decade, these advances have yielded an avalanche of metagenomic data. The current stage of "van Leeuwenhoek"-like cataloguing, as well as functional analyses, will likely accelerate as DNA and RNA sequencing, plus protein and metabolic profiling capacities and computational tools, continue to improve. However, it is time to consider: what's next for microbiome research? The short pieces included here briefly consider the challenges and opportunities awaiting microbiome research.

MeSH terms

  • Biological Evolution
  • Biomedical Research / trends*
  • Gastrointestinal Tract / microbiology
  • Humans
  • Microbiota*
  • Skin / microbiology
  • Synthetic Biology
  • Systems Biology