microbiome
Microbial EcologyNeutral Processes Dominate Microbial Community Assembly in Atlantic Salmon, Salmo salarA growing number of studies have examined variation in the microbiome to determine the role in modulating host health, physiology, and ecology. However, the ecology of host microbial colonization is not fully understood and rarely tested. The continued increase in production of farmed Atlantic salmon, coupled with increased farmed-wild salmon interactions, has accentuated the need to unravel the potential adaptive function of the...
Public and Environmental Health Microbiology | SpotlightSite-Specific Profiling of the Dental Mycobiome Reveals Strong Taxonomic Shifts during Progression of Early-Childhood CariesEarly-childhood caries is one of the most prevalent diseases in children worldwide and, while preventable, remains a global public health concern. Untreated cavities are painful and expensive and can lead to tooth loss and a lower quality of life. Caries are driven by acid production via microbial fermentation of dietary carbohydrates, resulting in enamel erosion. While caries is a well-studied disease, most research has focused on...
Invertebrate MicrobiologyA Highly Prevalent and Pervasive Densovirus Discovered among Sea Stars from the North American Atlantic CoastSea star wasting syndrome is a disease primarily observed on the Pacific and Atlantic Coasts of North America that has significantly impacted sea star populations. The etiology of this disease is unknown, although it is hypothesized to be caused by a densovirus, SSaDV. However, previous studies have not found a correlation between SSaDV and sea star wasting syndrome on the North American Atlantic Coast. This study suggests that this...
Public and Environmental Health MicrobiologyTopical Application of Adult Cecal Contents to Eggs Transplants Spore-Forming Microbiota but Not Other Members of the Microbiota to ChicksOver the last 60 years poultry production has intensified in response to increased demand for meat. In modern systems, chicks hatch without contacting chickens and their gut bacteria. Consequently, they are colonized by environmental bacteria that may cause disease. The normal bacteria that live in the gut, or intestinal microbiota, play an important role in the development of the immune system. Therefore, it is essential to find easy...
Environmental MicrobiologySoil Microbial Communities in Diverse Agroecosystems Exposed to the Herbicide GlyphosateIncreasing the efficiency of food production systems while reducing negative environmental effects remains a key societal challenge to successfully meet the needs of a growing global population. The herbicide glyphosate has become a nearly ubiquitous component of agricultural production across the globe, enabling an increasing adoption of no-till agriculture. Despite this widespread use, there remains considerable debate on the...
Invertebrate MicrobiologyInfluences of a Prolific Gut Fungus (Zancudomyces culisetae) on Larval and Adult Mosquito (Aedes aegypti)-Associated MicrobiotaMosquitoes are widespread vectors of numerous human pathogens and harbor microbiota known to affect host phenotypic traits. However, little research has directly investigated how bacterial communities associated with larvae and adults are connected. We characterized whole-body bacterial communities in mosquito larvae preceding pupation and in newly emerged adults, and investigated whether a significant biotic factor, fungal colonization...
Minireview | SpotlightReintroducing mothur: 10 Years LaterMore than 10 years ago, we published the paper describing the mothur software package in Applied and Environmental Microbiology. Our goal was to create a comprehensive package that allowed users to analyze amplicon sequence data using the most robust methods available. mothur has helped lead the community through the ongoing sequencing revolution and continues to provide this service to the microbial ecology community.
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Enzymology and Protein Engineering | SpotlightAdaptation of Syntenic Xyloglucan Utilization Loci of Human Gut Bacteroidetes to Polysaccharide Side Chain DiversityThe catabolism of complex carbohydrates that otherwise escape the endogenous digestive enzymes of humans and other animals drives the composition and function of the gut microbiota. Thus, detailed molecular characterization of dietary glycan utilization systems is essential both to understand the ecology of these complex communities and to manipulate their compositions, e.g., to benefit human health. Our research reveals new insight...
Microbial EcologyChanges in the Ileal, but Not Fecal, Microbiome in Response to Increased Dietary Protein Level and Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli Exposure in PigsGut bacterial communities have been shown to play a key role in pig health and development and are strongly influenced by host diet, but studies highlighting the complex interactions between nutrition, gut infections and the microbiome tend to focus on bacterial populations in the feces and not other important gut locations. We found that alteration of dietary protein level and exposure to a pathogenic microorganism, enterotoxigenic...
Environmental MicrobiologyContamination Is Not Linked to the Gestational MicrobiomeRecent evidence for a gestational microbiome suggests that active transfer between mother and fetus in utero is possible, and, therefore, actions must be taken to clarify the presence versus absence of these organisms in their respected sources. The value of this study is the differentiation between bacterial DNA identified in the necropsy rooms of animals and bacterial DNA whose origin is purely clinical in nature. We do not...