Assessing the safety of microbiome perturbations

Area of Science:

• Microbiome research
• Microbial ecology
• Toxicology and safety assessment

Background:

• Everyday activities like eating and hygiene significantly influence the human microbiome (oral, skin, gut).
• Advances in sequencing technologies enable detailed microbial profiling, fueling microbiome-targeted product development.
• Understanding long-term implications of microbiome perturbations is crucial for product safety.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the oral, skin, and gut microbiomes and the long-term implications of perturbations.
• To identify challenges in microbiome safety assessment, including confounding factors and data biases.
• To propose emerging technologies and strategies for enhanced risk assessment.

Main Methods:

• Literature review and synthesis of findings from an academic-industry workshop.
• Exploration of challenges in safety assessment: ecological variability, host factors, external conditions, and analytical biases.
• Identification of emerging technologies: omics, artificial intelligence, and in vitro models.

Main Results:

• Microbiome composition is linked to health and disease; perturbations like biofilm disruption are vital for oral health.
• Significant challenges exist in microbiome safety assessment due to complex interactions and data limitations.
• Emerging technologies and standardized methods can improve risk assessment accuracy and regulatory harmonization.

Conclusions:

• Further research is essential to understand long-term microbiome disturbance impacts, especially in vulnerable groups.
• Technological advancements (omics, AI, in vitro models) and transparent computational approaches can enhance safety assessments.
• Scientific collaboration, public engagement, and flexible harmonization of methods are critical for advancing microbiome safety.