Microbiome

The varied community of microorganisms that live in different parts of the body, particularly the gut, is referred to as the human microbiome. These microorganisms are mostly bacteria, but they can also be viruses, fungi, and archaea. These microbial communities are vital for immune regulation, nutrition synthesis, digestion, and pathogen defense. Metagenomics research has shown that homeostasis depends on a healthy, diverse microbiome, whereas dysbiosis, or imbalances in the microbiome, is linked to a variety of illnesses, such as obesity, inflammatory bowel disease, allergies, and neuropsychiatric disorders. The field of microbiome research is growing quickly, providing new information on diet-microbe interactions, probiotic treatments, and personalized medicine.

Ovarian Microbiome Overview: Fertility, PCOS, and the Gut–Ovary Axis

New insights into the ovarian microbiome reveal both promise and controversy, challenging long-held assumptions about reproductive health and opening doors to targeted therapies for infertility and PCOS.

The Microbiome and Aging

Conjunctiva microbiota

The Microbiome of a Newborn

Gut Bacteria and Autism Development

Microbiome-Host Cell Interactions

Antibiotics and the Microbiome

Semi-Volatile Organic Compounds (SVOCs) and the Microbiome

What is Vaginal Microbiome?

Fecal Microbiota Transplant Regulation

Fermented Foods and Gut Health

Menopause and the Microbiome

See more featured articles »

What Role Does the Immune System and Microbiome Play in Health and Disease?

Risk Factors for Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth

Scalp Microbiome Explained: What’s Living on Your Scalp and Why It Matters

Fecal Microbiota Transplant

Alzheimer's Disease and the Microbiome

What Role do Microbiomes Play in Urinary Tract Infections?

Does the Microbiome Interact with the Human Endocrine System?

Genetic Factors that Influence Bacterial Diversity in the Human Gut

Microbiome and Cancer

Insight into the Skin Microbiome

Parkinson's Disease and the Gut Microbiome

Achievements of the Human Microbiome Project

What is the Human Virome?

The Effect of Intermittent Fasting on the Gut Microbiome

Do Serotonin and Antidepressants Affect the Microbiome?

Gut Microbiota

Human Microbiome Project (HMP)

Is There a Link Between Migraine and the Gut Microbiome?

Microbiome and Disease

How “Fad” Diets Affect the Gut Microbiota

Is There a Brain Microbiome?

How Artificial Sweeteners Disrupt the Gut Microbiome, Or Do They?

Is Coffee Good for the Gut?

Drug Metabolism and Microbiome

Effects of a Gluten-Free Diet on the Gut Microbiota

How Does Your Diet Affect your Gut Microbiome?

Skin Microbiota

Can you Treat a Food Allergy by Altering the Gut Microbiome?

How Does the Diet Impact Microbiota?

Human Microbiome

Oral Microbiota

Disease Susceptibility and the Microbiome

Vaginal Microbiome and Premature Birth

Fecal Microbiota Transplant Technique

Latest Microbiome News and Research

Gut bacteria compound during pregnancy protects offspring from fatty liver disease

Children born to mothers who consume a high-fat, high-sugar diet during pregnancy and breastfeeding face a higher risk of developing fatty liver disease later in life.

14 Jan 2026

Bacterial metabolite enhances immune checkpoint therapy against lung cancer

UF Health Cancer Institute researchers have discovered a small compound produced naturally by gut bacteria that doubled the response to lung cancer immunotherapy treatment in mice and can now be made into a drug for testing in humans.

14 Jan 2026

Breast milk shares beneficial bacteria with babies

Researchers examine the relationship between the maternal milk microbiome and infant gut microbiome.

14 Jan 2026

Obesity study reveals gut fat's unique inflammatory role and immune cell richness

Abdominal fat is not a uniform tissue. A new study from Karolinska Institutet, Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen, and Helmholtz Munich reveals that fat located close to the large intestine contains an unusually high number of inflammatory fat cells and immune cells.

13 Jan 2026

Short-term, calorie-restrictive diet improves Crohn’s disease symptoms

A Stanford Medicine-led study finds a short-term, calorie-restrictive diet significantly improved symptoms.

13 Jan 2026

Dietary protein reshapes how cholera bacteria colonize the gut

Researchers investigate the role of dietary components and the gut microbiota in cholera.

13 Jan 2026

Earthworm-based composting offers a low-energy solution to antibiotic resistance

Earthworms could become unexpected allies in the global fight against antibiotic resistance, by helping farmers turn manure into safer, high-value organic fertilizer through a process called vermicomposting.

9 Jan 2026

New research decodes the bacterial “zip code” of colorectal cancer for prediction and survival

Bacterial communities in colorectal cancer reveal patterns linked to tumor genetics and patient outcomes, paving the way for personalized treatment strategies.

From BGI Genomics 9 Jan 2026

UVA researcher wins $700,000 for promising ovarian cancer research

Promising ovarian cancer research by Melanie Rutkowski, PhD, at the University of Virginia Comprehensive Cancer Center has won $700,000 in support from the Victoria's Secret Global Fund for Women's Cancers in partnership with Pelotonia and AACR, the American Association for Cancer Research.

8 Jan 2026

Exposure to micro- and nanoplastics linked to rising number of people with chronic IBD

A research team led by the Medical University of Vienna and the University of Vienna has investigated a possible link between the rising number of people with chronic inflammatory bowel disease and the increasing exposure to micro- and nanoplastics (MNPs).

8 Jan 2026

Arginine can modify plaque formation on teeth and protect against dental caries

New human clinical trial proves arginine, an amino acid, can modify plaque formation on teeth, thereby protecting against dental caries.

8 Jan 2026

Why promising microbiome therapies rarely work in patients

Addressing the microbiome's translational gap involves understanding biological complexity and developing function-driven, patient-specific interventions.

8 Jan 2026

Breast milk bacteria help shape infant gut microbiome development

Most conversations about breast milk tend to focus on topics like nutrients, antibodies and bonding time rather than bacteria.

7 Jan 2026

Gut-microbe-derived molecules may play a key role in shaping the developing immune system

An international research team has uncovered compelling evidence that gut-microbe-derived molecules may play an important role in shaping the developing immune system during early childhood.

7 Jan 2026

The gut is not just digestive and new evidence shows it actively controls brain function

This comprehensive review synthesizes a decade of human and animal research to explain how the gut and brain communicate through hormonal, neural, immune, and microbial pathways. It highlights how disruptions in these pathways contribute to gastrointestinal, metabolic, and neurological disorders, and how modern therapies are beginning to exploit gut–brain signaling for clinical benefit.

6 Jan 2026