Making the microbiome accessible to millennials
Posted 6th April 2020 by Joshua Sewell
In 2017 Lisa and Alanna MacFarlane started The Gut Stuff to bring gut health science and nutritional information together for the millennial generation. We spoke to Lisa about educating consumers and marketing products in gut health.
Culturing the uncultured: isolating human microbial ‘dark matter’
Posted 11th March 2020 by Joshua Sewell
A large fraction of the microorganisms that constitute the human microbiome have remained uncultured. Some of the uncultured microbes have close relatives that have been cultured. However, there are also whole groups of microbes that don’t have relatives in culture.
Microbiome R&D & Business Collaboration Forum presentation slides
Posted 15th July 2019 by Joshua Sewell
Following the Microbiome R&D & Business Collaboration Forum, we have made the following presentation slides from Karoline Faust, Dirk Hadrich, Lesley Hoyles & Jos Seegers available.
The top 4 challenges for microbiome companies – NIZO
Posted 8th May 2019 by Joshua Sewell
Microbiome research is abundant and profoundly inspiring. Whether focusing on cancer drug response, or the more classical field of gut discomfort solutions, we are clearly on the brink of some long-anticipated breakthroughs. But despite the promise, companies in the field face challenges.
How does Maternal Microbiome composition influence offspring metabolic outcomes?
Posted 27th February 2019 by Joshua Sewell
Professor Margaret Morris is Chair and Head of Pharmacology, School of Medical Sciences, University of NSW. Her research explores the underlying brain mechanisms in epilepsy, obesity, diabetes, and the link between obesity and high blood pressure. We recently asked her about her research into obesity and the microbiome.
Looking beyond the bacterial gut microbiome
Posted 5th April 2018 by Jane Williams
Most microbiome research to date has focused on the bacterial gut microbiome, and yet microbiomes are comprised of a wide array of microbes – from viruses and archaea to protozoa and yeasts – and colonize nearly every human body site – from the skin and lungs to the urogenital system and breast milk.
The conundrum with animal models of the human microbiome
Posted 15th March 2018 by Jane Williams
‘The most that can be expected from any model is that it can supply a useful approximation to reality: All models are wrong; some models are useful.’
This aphorism, simply articulated here by prominent British statistician George Box, gets to the crux of the dilemma we face when considering animal models for the study of human microbiome dynamics and mechanisms.
The Emerging Market of the Human Microbiome
Posted 19th January 2018 by Jane Williams
The human microbiome is an area of life sciences that is gaining traction in the venture capital community. According to the Wall Street Journal, venture capital investment in microbiome companies rose 458.5 percent to 114.5 million U.S. dollars during the period from 2011 – 2015.
