Abstract
In this chapter, we discuss the concept that your body is a living ecosystem of hundreds of different types of bacteria, of which some are opportunists that cause serious infections while others are symbionts and pathobionts that can profoundly affect your health. The location and composition of these communities are highlighted, mostly using the digestive system as a frame of reference, in the context of their balance inside the host, with an unbalanced state being a precursor to pathogen invasion, harmful to the mucosal surface, and ultimately the basis for many acute and chronic diseases. The chapter concludes with a foray into some methods the microbiomist uses to make sense of these complex relationships. The learner will be armed with the foundational knowledge to understand how these relationships may cause disease and the concepts to formulate new reductionist approaches to reveal their mechanistic basis.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Suggested Reading
Anders HJ, Andersen K, Stecher B (2013) The intestinal microbiota, a leaky gut, and abnormal immunity in kidney disease. Kidney Int 83:1010–1016. https://doi.org/10.1038/ki.2012.440
Claesson MJ, Clooney AG, O’Toole PW (2017) A clinician’s guide to microbiome analysis. Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol 14:585–595. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrgastro.2017.97
Hendrickx AP et al (2015) Antibiotic-driven dysbiosis mediates intraluminal agglutination and alternative segregation of Enterococcus faecium from the intestinal epithelium. MBio 6:e01346–e01315. https://doi.org/10.1128/mBio.01346-15
Hollister EB, Gao C, Versalovic J (2014) Compositional and functional features of the gastrointestinal microbiome and their effects on human health. Gastroenterology 146:1449–1458. https://doi.org/10.1053/j.gastro.2014.01.052
Kuczynski J et al (2011) Experimental and analytical tools for studying the human microbiome. Nat Rev Genet 13:47–58. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrg3129
Lawley TD, Walker AW (2013) Intestinal colonization resistance. Immunology 138:1–11. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2567.2012.03616.x
Manichanh C, Borruel N, Casellas F, Guarner F (2012) The gut microbiota in IBD. Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol 9:599–608. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrgastro.2012.152
Marchesi J (2014). The human microbiota and microbiome. Advances in molecular and cellular microbiology. United Kingdom, CAB International. 208
Tuddenham S, Sears CL (2015) The intestinal microbiome and health. Curr Opin Infect Dis 28:464–470. https://doi.org/10.1097/QCO.0000000000000196
Turnbaugh PJ et al (2006) An obesity-associated gut microbiome with increased capacity for energy harvest. Nature 444:1027–1031. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature05414
Turner JR (2009) Intestinal mucosal barrier function in health and disease. Nat Rev Immunol 9:799–809. https://doi.org/10.1038/nri2653
Wexler HM (2007) Bacteroides: the good, the bad, and the nitty-gritty. Clin Microbiol Rev 20:593–621. https://doi.org/10.1128/CMR.00008-07
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2019 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Maresso, A.W. (2019). The Human Microbiome. In: Bacterial Virulence. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20464-8_13
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20464-8_13
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-20463-1
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-20464-8
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)