550 Charting the human hair follicle microbiome: Composition, distribution, and functional impact of the bacterial metabolite, butyrate

Abstract

Human hair follicles (HFs) harbor rich microbial communities, while dysbiosis of the HF microbiome is associated with hair diseases. Yet, the composition, distribution, and physiological functions of HF commensals for human HF growth, immunity, pigmentation and/or metabolism remain poorly explored. As a first step towards clarifying these items, healthy adult human scalp HFs were laser-capture-microdissected to extract DNA from defined HF compartments for metagenomic sequencing. Besides all known main human HF microbiota (e.g., Staphylococcus, Cutibacterium and Corynebacterium), new human HF-associated microbiota were identified, amongst them some extremophiles within the bulb region, supportive of a more selective and challenging environment.