Core microbiota

The bacterial community associated with rotifers has been studied extensively by culture-based approaches (Nicolas et ai, 1989 Skjermo and Vadstein, 1993 Blanch et al, 1997). These studies indicate that bacteria isolated from rotifers depend on the protocols used for rotifer cultivation and enrichment as well as the non-selective uptake of bacteria present in the culture water (Skjermo and Vadstein, 1993). A recent molecular study suggested that the bacterial communities of rotifers are more stable than communities associated with Artemia, with a stable core microbiota being present in most rotifer samples (McIntosh et ai, 2008). Both culture-based and molecular studies have shown that Vibrio spp. are significant components of the bacterial community associated with rotifers (Blanch et al., 1997 Nicolas et al, 1989 Brunvold et al, 2007). 

Spitaels F, Wieme AD, Janssens M, Aerts M, Van Landschoot A, De Vuyst L, Vandamme P. The microbial diversity of an industrially produced lambic beer shares members of a traditionally produced one and reveals a core microbiota for lambic beer fermentation. Food Microbiol. 2015. doi http //dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fm.2015.01.008. (in press). 

Tap J, Mondot S, Levenez F, et al. Towards the human intestinal microbiota phylogenetic core. Environ Microbiol. 2009 11 2574-2584. Salonen A, Salojarvi J, Lahti L, de Vos WM. The adult intestinal core microbiota is determined by analysis depth and health status. Clin... 

Sekelja M, Berget I, Naes T, Rudi K. Unveiling an abundant core microbiota in the human adult colon by a phylogroup-independent searching approach. ISME. 2011 5 519-531. 

PracticaUy, the core microbiota is responsible for the major characteristics of acidic beer fermentation processes. The application of novel techniques and exhaustive studying of this relatively unknown fermentation process give further insights into the complexity of lambic beer production processes (Spitaels et al. 2014a, 2015b). 

The stomach-associated bacterium Helicobacter pylori exemplifies co-evolution between microorganisms and humans. Patterns of H. sapiens migration from Africa across the globe can be traced from the strain diversity of this bacterial species. Comparing the human gut microbiota and microbiome worldwide is the only way, in principle, to reveal if there is a core set of gut microbial genes and organismal lineages that are shared by most, if not all, humans. 

Understanding the compositional and functional differences in the gut microbiota can lay the foundation to relate these differences to human health. Differences in the microbiota and the microbiome could help to explain the variation in the gut metabolic processes of individuals, including the metabolism of drugs and food. Many of these metabolic pathways are outside the common functional core, so they can underlie host-specific responses. 

Tap J, Mondot S, Levenez F, et al. Towards the human intestinal microbiota phylogenetic core. Environ Microbiol. 2009 11 2574-2584. 

Despite the notion of a core microbiome and the stability of the gut microbial ecosystem over time without major changes in dietary habits, each individual person harbors their own characteristic intestinal microbiota (in the sense of a persmialized fingerprint). Indeed, there are large interindividual differences in both intestinal bacterial compositiOTi (proportion of taxa) and diversity (qualitative pattern of... 

Meersman, E., Steensels, J., Mathawan, M., et al. (2013) Detailed analysis of the microbial population in Malaysian spontaneous cocoa pulp fermentations reveals a core and variable microbiota. PLoS ONE 8, e81559. 

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