Search

ABSTRACT Characterizing the gut microbiome in the healthy population is the first step in elucidating its associations with host health conditions. Populations with different diet patterns, lifestyles, and genetic backgrounds harbor different gut microbes. In this study, we characterized the gut microbiome of 890 healthy Koreans using 16S rRNA sequencing. The Korean population harbored a relatively large fraction of the Prevotella enterotype and presented a distinctive gut microbiome, compared to that in the populations of other countries. Additionally, we determined the clusters of cooccurring microbes that were quantitatively correlated with each other. We found that microbe composition of the gut was strongly associated with age. We identified that the abundance of members of Bacteroidia and Clostridia differed with the host dietary patterns, body mass index, and stool frequency. The gut microbiome data obtained in this study would be an important resource for future studies addressing microbial contributions in health and disease. IMPORTANCE Comparing the gut microbiomes of healthy controls and disease patients showed that the composition of the gut microbiome is associated with various host health conditions. The gut microbiome in healthy Western populations is well characterized, while that of non-Western populations, with different diet patterns, lifestyles, and genetic backgrounds, is not clearly defined. In this study, we characterized the microbiome of 890 healthy Korean individuals using 16S rRNA sequencing and found that Koreans have a gut microbiome different from that in the individuals of neighboring countries. The members of Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes cooccurred and were quantitatively associated with each other. Additionally, we found that the gut microbial composition is strongly associated with the host’s age. The microbiome data presented here represent the gut microbiome of a healthy Korean population and could be used to unveil gut microbiome-associated host conditions in this population.

The genome-probing microarray (GPM) is used to monitor the population dynamics of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) during the fermentation of kimchi, a traditional food in Korea. The results of GPM hybridization with fluorescently labeled bulk community DNA have indicated the practicality and applicability of this new quantitative tool for the estimation of cultivatable bacteria from different environments.

Staphylococcus vitulinus is a coagulase-negative staphylococcus in the family Staphylococcaceae. This report describes the draft genome sequence of S. vitulinus F1028, which was isolated from a traditional Korean soybean food (meju). This 2.56-Mbp genome sequence is the first S. vitulinus genome of a strain isolated from a fermented soybean product. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report describes the draft genome sequence of Staphylococcus lentus F1142, which was isolated from a Korean fermented soybean paste (doenjang). The draft genome sequence contained 2.79 Mbp with a G+C content of 31.8%; this is the first S. lentus genome to be reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paenibacillus polymyxa is an endospore-forming Gram-positive soil bacterium that is well-known for its ability to promote plant growth. Here we report the draft genome sequence of P. polymyxa ATCC 842T, the type strain of the species P. polymyxa, and the family Paenibacillaceae. The P. polymyxa genome contains a repertoire of biosynthetic genes for antibiotics and hydrolytic enzymes that account for its beneficial effects in the rhizosphere to the host plants it associates with. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]