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Elevation is Associated with Human Skin Microbiomes.

Huan Li1,2, Yijie Wang1, Qiaoling Yu1

  • 1School of Public Health, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.

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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Human skin microbiota diversity decreases with increasing elevation, with high-altitude environments favoring deterministic processes and leading to less stable microbial communities. This impacts human health and disease resistance.

Keywords:
Skin microbiomedeterministic processediversityelevationnetwork

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Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Human Ecology
  • Environmental Science

Background:

  • The human skin microbiota is vital for pathogen defense and is linked to skin diseases.
  • High-elevation environments present extreme conditions like high UV radiation, potentially influencing skin microbial communities.
  • Most research focuses on low-elevation skin microbiotas, leaving high-elevation human microbiotas understudied.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the diversity, function, assembly, and co-occurrence patterns of skin microbiotas across an elevation gradient.
  • To determine the impact of high elevation on human skin microbial community structure and stability.
  • To compare microbial community assembly processes between high- and low-elevation environments.

Main Methods:

  • Collected skin microbiota samples from 35 healthy individuals across seven elevation gradients (501–3431 m).
  • Analyzed samples from three body sites (forehead, opisthenar, palm).
  • Utilized diversity indices (Shannon, OTUs, Jaccard, Bray-Curtis) and phylogenetic analysis to assess community structure, assembly, and network properties.

Main Results:

  • Alpha diversity decreased with increasing elevation, while beta diversity increased.
  • Significant structural and functional separation of skin microbiotas was observed between high (>3000 m) and low (<3000 m) elevations.
  • High-elevation skin microbial networks were less connected and more fragile, with a greater proportion of deterministic assembly processes.

Conclusions:

  • Elevation is a significant factor shaping human skin microbiota composition and function, independent of host factors.
  • High-elevation environments, such as the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, exert selective pressures leading to less stable skin microbial communities.
  • The findings suggest that environmental filtering at high altitudes promotes deterministic processes, altering microbial community dynamics and potentially impacting human health.