The human microbiome: Role in health and disease and its potential applications

Dean and Chair Professor of Microbiology Faculty of Medicine The human microbiota comprises all microorganisms living within the human body and microbiome is their collective genome. They include eukaryotes, archaea, bacteria and viruses. Most microbes live in the gut, particularly in the large intestine. The number of genes contributed to by the microbes is 100 times the number of genes in the human genome. The sheer microbial abundance suggests that the human body is a collection of human and microbial cells and their genes resulting in a blend of human and microbial traits. The microbiome is essential for maintenance of human life. The microbes that live in and on us are mostly beneficial colonizers and have many important functions such as assisting in digestion, regulating immune system, producing essential vitamins and protecting against bacteria that cause diseases. Research has demonstrated that dysbioses in the human microbiome correlate with numerous disease states, including inflammatory bowel disease, malignancy and autoimmune diseases.