The human microbiome is a community of trillions of microorganisms that reside in our body, especially in the digestive tract. It is a dynamic community that plays a pivotal role in regulating our health and diseases.
These microbes influence various aspects of our well-being, including the way we digest food, absorb nutrients, metabolise key metabolites, develop immunity, and keep good mental health. This is why scientists have been immensely interested in understanding the intricate relationship between the human genome and the body’s microbial inhabitants.
Genomic technologies have been central to our knowledge of the human microbiome. Many microorganisms of the microbiome aren’t amenable to being studied in a scientist’s traditional way: by culturing them in a lab.
