Microbiomes in light of traits: A phylogenetic perspective
University of California, Irvine · University of Notre Dame · +2 more institutions
Abstract
A focus on the phenotypic characteristics of microorganisms-their traits-offers a path for interpreting the growing amount of microbiome data. We review key aspects of microbial traits, as well as approaches used to assay their phylogenetic distribution. Recent studies reveal that microbial traits are differentially conserved across the tree of life and appear to be conserved in a hierarchical fashion, possibly linked to their biochemical complexity. These results suggest a predictive framework whereby the genetic (or taxonomic) resolution of microbiome variation among samples provides information about the traits under selection. The organizational parallels seen among human and free-living microbiomes seem…
Citation impact
- FWCI
- 28.31
- Percentile
- 100%
- References
- 120
Authors
4Topics & keywords
- Microbiome
- Phylogenetic tree
- Perspective (graphical)
- Biology
- Evolutionary biology
- Computational biology
- Genetics
- Computer science
- Life in Land