Why and how do scientists study the microbiome? Highlighting the Microbiomes in Transition Initiative [VIDEO]

Microbiome Insights co-founder Dr. Bill Mohn chairs the Advisory Board to the Microbiomes in Transition (MinT) program at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). In this video, our Scientific Advisory Board member Janet Jansson, Senior Microbial Scientist at PNNL, discusses how microbes affect human and environmental health.

Microbiomes exist everywhere, both in nature and within and on humans. The microbiomes of every human or ecosystem play a significant role in maintaining their proper function. Now, due to recent technological breakthroughs in sequencing and computing we are able to begin to characterise these organisms and their impacts.

Soil, for example, is one of the most diverse microbial communities on the planet and has traditionally been difficult to characterise. Understanding the microbial make-up of different soils like the permafrost, which currently has trapped within it vast amounts of carbon, will be crucial to understanding how, with warming temperatures, microbes will begin to degrade this carbon and release CO2. Within humans too, understanding the newfound correlations between the microbiome, diet, and certain diseases could constitute a huge step towards better health. To process all of this information strong analytic systems and supercomputing devices are required.

 

 

About Microbiome Insights

Microbiome Insights, Inc. is a global leader providing end-to-end microbiome sequencing and comprehensive bioinformatic analysis. The company is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada where samples from around the world are processed in its College of American Pathologist (CAP) accredited laboratory. Working with clients from pharma, biotech, nutrition, cosmetic and agriculture companies as well as with world leading academic and government research institutions, Microbiome Insights has supported over 925 microbiome studies from basic research to commercial R&D and clinical trials. The company's team of expert bioinformaticians and data scientists deliver industry leading insights including biomarker discovery, machine-learning based modelling and customized bioinformatics analysis.