BMC Medical Genomics is calling for submissions to our Collection on microbiomes in human disease. In early years, the human microbiome was considered to be mostly restricted to the intestinal system. Further research has elucidated that the human microbiome consists of a series of connected systems of microbial ecosystem which colonise several regions of the human body, which have their own localised importance but are also interconnected. For human health, balanced microbiota are of vital importance and dysbiosis can cause severe disease.
The microbiota are complex microbial ecosystems comprising of various prokaryotes, archaea, viruses, and eukaryotes (in particular protozoa and fungi). The interplay of these non-human cells with the colonised tissues impacts the physiology and homeostasis of the host. Microbiota have been best studied in the gut, but other microbiota such as oral, skin, and vaginal microbiota are gaining more attention in health and disease. Imbalance or alterations in the composition of microbiota can impact various organs and organ systems and have been associated with systemic and chronic diseases, including allergic diseases, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal and metabolic, neurological, respiratory diseases, as well as some types of cancer. Many of the interactions are complex and require further research.
In this collection “Microbiomes in human disease”, BMC Medical Genomics, welcomes submissions on research articles and methods investigating various aspects of the human microbiota and their role in human disease. In particular we are welcoming research on the interactions of various microbiota within the human body, treatment of microbiome dysbiosis, and effects of microbiome imbalance on human disease, especially in clinical settings. Bioinformatics studies which do not present a strong research rationale or clinical validation will not be considered for this collection.
Topics in the collection “Microbiomes in human disease” in BMC Medical Genomics include, but are not limited to:
- Development of microbiome therapeutics
- Relation of clinical conditions to microbiota dysbiosis
- Mechanistic understanding of microbiome composition and interaction with the human host
- Host-microbiome interactions and host-environment-microbiome interactions
- Diagnostic and prognostic potential of microbiome-based biomarkers in disease
- Longitudinal microbiome data analysis
- Diet and its effects on gut microbiome biodiversity and function
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