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Nature Reviews Microbiology 6, 256–257 (1 April 2008) | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1880

Symbiosis: Who does what in the microbiome?

Susan Jones

Recent studies have shown that the complement of gut bacteria varies among individuals, but specific data linking the bacteria present to their functions in human physiology have been lacking. In a recent report, Min Li and colleagues describe a multidisciplinary approach to link the functions of the trillions of microbial gut bacteria — the human microbiome — to host metabolic phenotypes.