Microorganisms | “Gut Microbiota” Section's Aims and Scope Update

Section Information (new version):

Section Information (old version):

The gut microbiota, a complex community of trillions of microorganisms residing in the human gastrointestinal tract, plays a crucial role in maintaining overall health. It influences various bodily functions, including digestion, immune response, and even mental health through the gut–microbiota–brain axis. Over the last decade, it has become evident that the development of microbiota imbalance, known as dysbiosis, is linked to numerous health issues, such as inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, diabetes, and even neurological and psychological disorders. In addition, a balanced gut microbiota plays a role in supporting the absorption of nutrients and protection against pathogens.

With the advent of metagenomics, the composition of the microbiota has begun to be elucidated, and associations between the development of dysbiosis and alterations in microbiota composition can now be analyzed. The importance of specific bacterial species in the maintenance of a healthy microbiota and their roles in various physiological processes are also being increasingly understood. However, given the extremely broad range of metabolic functions across hundreds of species, a mechanistic understanding is key for detecting the actual functionalities of the different families and species in the consortia.

In animal hosts, the gut microbiota plays an equally crucial role in maintaining health. Studies of animal gut microbiota have provided important insights into microbial ecology and the interactions between the microbiota and the host. Significant attention has been paid to the gut microbiota of farm animals, with a focus on raising healthy animals, including investigations of the associations of the gut microbiota with improved feed conversion ratios and protection against pathogens. Similarly, the gut microbiota of companion animals and its associations with various health issues have attracted researchers' attention.

In the section “Gut Microbiota”, we focus on research questions related to microbial ecology within the community, the functionalities of microbiota members, metabolic and immunological interactions with the host (both human and animal), and the role of the gut microbiota in health and disorders. The Editorial Board will review all the manuscripts submitted for publication in this section; articles outside the scope of the subject matter listed here may be referred to another section of Microorganisms (ISSN: 2076-2607).

The symbiosis between the gut microbiota and the host depends on the metabolic and immunologic interaction with the host. Over the last ten years it has become evident that the development of a dysbiosis plays an important role in many diseases. These include metabolisms related diseases such as the metabolic syndrome, and diseases of the intestinal tract such as inflammatory bowel diseases, but there is also a gut–brain–axis that can be influenced by the intestinal microbiota.

With the advent of metagenomics, the question of the composition became addressable and associations between the development of a dysbiosis and an altered composition of the microbiota can now be analyzed. Given the extremely broad range of metabolic functions in the hundreds of species, a mechanistic understanding is key to detect the actual functionalities of the different families and species in the consortia.

In the section Gut Microbiota, we will focus on research questions aiming at the microbial ecology in the community, the functionalities of members of the microbiota, the metabolic and immunological interaction with the host and the role of the microbiota in human diseases. The editorial board will review all manuscripts submitted for publication in this section. However, articles which seem to be outside the scope of the subject matter listed here may be referred to another section of Microorganisms.

Keywords (new version):

Keywords (old version):

• The structure and function of the microbiota;
• Microbial community genetics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics;
• Interaction within the microbiota;
• Metabolic interaction with the host;
• Inflammatory diseases;
• Interaction with the immune system;
• Microbial biodegradation of nutrients and xenobiotics;
• Microbial ecology;
• Microbial functions in different habitats within the gut;
• Metabolic flux analysis;
• Model systems for studying microbiome biology;
• Novel technologies for the analysis of the structure and function of the microbiota.

• Structure and function of the microbiota
• Microbial community genetics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics
• Interaction within the microbiota
• Metabolic interaction with the host
• Inflammatory diseases
• Interaction with the immune system
• Microbial biodegradation of nutrients and xenobiotics
• Microbial ecology
• Microbial functions in the different habitats within the gut
• Metabolic flux analysis
• Analysis of functionalities by stable isotope probing (DNA, RNA and protein)
• Model systems for studying microbiome biology
• Novel technologies for the analysis of structure and function of the microbiota