Sequence and cultivation study of Muribaculaceae reveals novel species, host preference, and functional potential of this yet undescribed family

Bacteria within family S24-7 (phylum Bacteroidetes) are dominant in the mouse gut microbiota and detected in the intestine of other animals. Because they had not been cultured until recently and the family classification is still ambiguous, interaction with their host was difficult to study and confusion still exists regarding sequence data annotation.

We investigated family S24-7 by combining data from large-scale 16S rRNA gene analysis and from functional and taxonomic studies of metagenomic and cultured species.