The human mycobiome: a critical yet understudied component of health and disease

The human body hosts a complex and dynamic microbial community that is crucial for maintaining health. While bacteria dominate this system, fungal communities, collectively called the mycobiome, are increasingly recognized as vital contributors. However, fungi remain understudied due to challenges in culturing many species, limiting our understanding of their roles, interactions and effects on human biology. Advances in next-generation sequencing have transformed mycobiome research, revealing fungal diversity and its impact on health and disease. This review examines the mycobiome's composition and function across major body sites, including the gut, mouth, lungs, reproductive tract and skin. It also explores connections between fungal imbalances (dysbiosis) and diseases such as neurological disorders, cancer and post-COVID-19 complications. Despite progress, challenges persist, including the need for better culture-independent diagnostic tools and standardized research methods. Combining culturomics and metagenomics could help overcome these limitations and identify new treatment targets. By summarizing current knowledge and highlighting research gaps, this review aims to guide future studies on the mycobiome's role in human health.