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The Human Microbiome Project:
Exploring the Microbial Side of Ourselves |
Jeffrey I Gordon, MD |
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Dr Robert J Glaser Distinguished University Professor
Director, Center for Genome Sciences
Washington University School of Medicine
St.Louis, Missouri |
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Our genetic landscape is a summation of the genes embedded
in our human genome and the genomes of our microbial partners
(the microbiome). Our metabolic features are an amalgamation
of human and microbial traits. Therefore, understanding
of the range of human genetic and physiologic diversity
means that we must characterize our microbiome, as well as
the factors that influence the assembly, stability, functions and
variations in our microbiota. The results should provide an
additional perspective about contemporary human biology, as
we assess how our lifestyles, cultural and societal norms,
socioeconomic status, and changing biosphere are influencing
our ‘micro’-evolution, and thus our health. Therefore, members
of my lab are exploring the following questions: What are
the genomic and metabolic foundations of our mutually beneficial
relationships with gut microbes? How do we acquire our
microbiota? How stable is it? Do humans share an identifiable
core ‘microbiome’? How do variations in the microbiome correlate
with and contribute to health and disease? How can we
manipulate our gut microbial communities to optimize their
performance in the context of an individual, or a population?
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