DNA sequencing continues to decrease in cost with the Illumina HiSeq2000 generating up
to 600 Gb of paired-end 100 base reads in a ten-day run. Here we present a protocol for …

Our growing awareness of the microbial world’s importance and diversity contrasts starkly
with our limited understanding of its fundamental structure. Despite recent advances in DNA …

Our understanding of the link between the human microbiome and disease, including obesity,
inflammatory bowel disease, arthritis and autism, is rapidly expanding. Improvements in …

We present two standards developed by the Genomic Standards Consortium (GSC) for
reporting bacterial and archaeal genome sequences. Both are extensions of the Minimum …

For centuries ecologists have studied how the diversity and functional traits of plant and
animal communities vary across biomes. In contrast, we have only just begun exploring similar …

Designing primers for PCR-based taxonomic surveys that amplify a broad range of phylotypes
in varied community samples is a difficult challenge, and the comparability of data sets …

Here we describe, the longest microbial time-series analyzed to date using high-resolution
16S rRNA tag pyrosequencing of samples taken monthly over 6 years at a temperate marine …

The Earth Microbiome Project (EMP) was launched in August 2010, with the ambitious aim
of constructing a global catalogue of the uncultured microbial diversity of this planet. The …

Background The Amish and Hutterites are US agricultural populations whose lifestyles are
remarkably similar in many respects but whose farming practices, in particular, are distinct; …

The bacteria that colonize humans and our built environments have the potential to influence
our health. Microbial communities associated with seven families and their homes over 6 …