Human Health and Disease in a Microbial World

Peter J Turnbaugh,Alain Stintzi

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2011.00190

Abstract

Human Health and Disease in a Microbial World

Highlights

We present a series of reviews highlighting that the human immune system is intimately linked to the gut microbiome; the gut microbiota influences immune development, susceptibility to infection from pathogens, and inflammation (Kosiewicz et al, 2011; Reading and Kasper, 2011; Smith and Garrett, 2011)
Through the use of gnotobiotic mouse models colonized with cultured isolates from the human gut, recent studies have highlighted the role specific members of this complex community can play in programming the immune system
Segmented filamentous bacteria can promote the expansion of IL-17 cells, Bacteroides fragilis can alleviate colitis in animal models, and some Clostridium strains can promote the expansion of regulatory T-cells

Summary

Introduction

In this “Research Topic” collection of reviews, perspectives, and original research articles, leading researchers in the field have highlighted recent developments in our appreciation of the structure and function of the human microbiome, spanning a wide range of topics including immune development (Derrien et al, 2011; Kosiewicz et al, 2011; Pfeiffer and Sonnenburg, 2011; Reading and Kasper, 2011; Smith and Garrett, 2011), IBD (Young et al, 2011), nutrition, and obesity (Geurts et al, 2011; Li et al, 2011; Lin, 2011; Thomas et al, 2011), and novel methods for analyzing complex microbial communities (Moore et al, 2011; Parfrey et al, 2011). We present a series of reviews highlighting that the human immune system is intimately linked to the gut microbiome; the gut microbiota influences immune development, susceptibility to infection from pathogens, and inflammation (Kosiewicz et al, 2011; Reading and Kasper, 2011; Smith and Garrett, 2011).

Results

Conclusion