Investigating a holobiont: Microbiota perturbations and transkingdom networks

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Systems Biology
• Genomics

Background:

• Multicellular hosts and their associated microbiota are increasingly recognized as a single functional unit, the holobiont.
• Understanding holobiont physiology requires dissecting complex host-microbiota interactions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review and integrate experimental and computational approaches for studying holobiont physiology.
• To highlight methods for perturbing and characterizing microbiota and inferring their impact on host functions.

Main Methods:

• Microbiota perturbation using antibiotics and germ-free animal models.
• Computational microbiota characterization and inference of microbe-host interactions.
• Transkingdom network analysis for dissecting host-microbiota mechanisms.

Main Results:

• Combined experimental and computational approaches enable dissection of holobiont regulatory mechanisms.
• Transkingdom network analysis offers a novel method for identifying key microbial players affecting host functions.
• Validation of computational predictions using in vitro and in vivo systems is crucial.

Conclusions:

• A unified view of hosts and microbiota as holobionts necessitates integrated research strategies.
• Advanced computational tools, like transkingdom network analysis, are vital for understanding complex host-microbiota interactions.
• Experimental validation remains essential for confirming computationally derived insights into holobiont function.