Structure, function and diversity of the healthy human microbiome.
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Cross-sectional observational profiling study (design analogy)
PubMed 22699609 · doi:10.1038/nature11234
What was done
As part of the Human Microbiome Project, researchers analyzed microbial communities across multiple distinct, clinically relevant body habitats (including gut, skin, and vagina) in a cohort of healthy human subjects to characterize taxonomic diversity, niche specialization, and metagenomic metabolic pathway carriage.
What was found
Microbial diversity and abundance varied widely across healthy subjects with strong niche specialization within and between individuals. The study captured an estimated 81-99% of the genera, enzyme families, and community configurations typical of the healthy Western microbiome. Metagenomic carriage of metabolic pathways was stable among individuals despite community structure variation, and ethnic/racial background showed one of the strongest associations with both pathways and microbes. The abstract reports no specific participant count or test statistics.
Why it matters
This work provides a foundational reference catalog of baseline structural and functional configurations of the healthy human microbiome, establishing a benchmark for disease and translational research.
Limits
The abstract omits exact sample sizes (n) and demographic details. Findings represent an observational snapshot of healthy Western individuals, limiting generalizability to non-Western populations or diseased cohorts, and do not establish causal mechanisms behind observed variations.
Cited by
- supports The Human Microbiome Project launched in 2007 to map the microbial communities across various human body sites including the mouth, gut, and skin.