application of ecological network theory to the human microbiome生态网络理论应用到人类微生物组.pdfVIP

Hindawi Publishing Corporation Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Infectious Diseases Volume 2008, Article ID 839501, 6 pages doi:10.1155/2008/839501 Review Article Application of Ecological Network Theory to the Human Microbiome James A. Foster,1, 2 Stephen M. Krone,2, 3 and Larry J. Forney1, 2 1 Department of Biological Sciences, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID 83844-3051, USA 2 The Initiative for Bioinformatics and Evolutionary STudies (IBEST), University of Idaho, Moscow, ID 83844-3051, USA 3 Department of Mathematics, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID 83844-3051, USA Correspondence should be addressed to James A. Foster, foster@ Received 31 May 2008; Accepted 18 August 2008 Recommended by Thomas M. Schmidt In healthy humans, many microbial consortia constitute rich ecosystems with dozens to hundreds of species, finely tuned to functions relevant to human health. Medical interventions, lifestyle changes, and the normal rhythms of life sometimes upset the balance in microbial ecosystems, facilitating pathogen invasions or causing other clinically relevant problems. Some diseases, such as bacterial vaginosis, have exactly this sort of community etiology. Mathematical network theory is ideal for studying the ecological networks of interacting species that comprise the human microbiome. Theoretical networks require little consortia specific data to provide insight into both normal and disturbed microbial community functions, but it is easy to incorporate additional empirical data as it becomes available. We argue that understanding some diseases, such as bacterial vaginosis, requires a shift of focus from individual bacteria to (mathematical) networks of interacting populations, and that known emergent properties of these networks will provide in