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Updated: Jul 30, 2025

Purifying the Impure: Sequencing Metagenomes and Metatranscriptomes from Complex Animal-associated Samples
Published on: December 22, 2014
Ecology of the respiratory tract microbiome
Ana Elena Pérez-Cobas1, Jerónimo Rodríguez-Beltrán1, Fernando Baquero2
1Department of Microbiology, Ramón y Cajal Institute for Health Research (IRYCIS), Ramón y Cajal University Hospital, Madrid, Spain; CIBER in Infectious Diseases (CIBERINFEC), Madrid, Spain.
Abstract:
A thriving multi-kingdom microbial ecosystem inhabits the respiratory tract: the respiratory tract microbiome (RTM). In recent years, the contribution of the RTM to human health has become a crucial research aspect. However, research into the key ecological processes, such as robustness, resilience, and microbial interaction networks, has only recently started. This review leans on an ecological framework to interpret the human RTM and determine how the ecosystem functions and assembles. Specifically, the review illustrates the ecological RTM models and discusses microbiome establishment, community structure, diversity stability, and critical microbial interactions. Lastly, the review outlines the RTM responses to ecological disturbances, as well as the promising approaches for restoring ecological balance.
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