title: The Host Microbiome Regulates and Maintains Human Health: A Primer and Perspective for Non-Microbiologists.
abstract: Humans consider themselves discrete autonomous organisms, but recent research is rapidly strengthening the appreciation that associated microorganisms make essential contributions to human health and well being. Each person is inhabited and also surrounded by his/her own signature microbial cloud. A low diversity of microorganisms is associated with a plethora of diseases, including allergy, diabetes, obesity, arthritis, inflammatory bowel diseases, and even neuropsychiatric disorders. Thus, an interaction of microorganisms with the host immune system is required for a healthy body. Exposure to microorganisms from the moment we are born and appropriate microbiome assembly during childhood are essential for establishing an active immune system necessary to prevent disease later in life. Exposure to microorganisms educates the immune system, induces adaptive immunity, and initiates memory B and T cells that are essential to combat various pathogens. The correct microbial-based education of immune cells may be critical in preventing the development of autoimmune diseases and cancer. This review provides a broad overview of the importance of the host microbiome and accumulating knowledge of how it regulates and maintains a healthy human system.Cancer Res; 77(8); 1783-812. ©2017 AACR.
authors.affiliation: Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, Wynnewood, Pennsylvania. thomass-02@mlhs.org suntom2@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Sunil
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska.
authors.forename: Jacques
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Izard
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Medicine, Infection and Immunity, Harvard School of Dental Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Emily
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Walsh
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Duke Brain Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina.|Department of Surgery, Duke Brain Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina.|Department of Pathology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina.
authors.forename: Kristen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Batich
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Duke Brain Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina.|Department of Surgery, Duke Brain Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina.|Department of Pathology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina.
authors.forename: Pakawat
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Chongsathidkiet
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioural Science, APC Microbiome Institute University College Cork, Cork, Ireland.
authors.forename: Gerard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Clarke
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts.|Department of Microbiology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts.|Center for Microbiome Research, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Sela
authors.affiliation: Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, Wynnewood, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: Alexander J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Muller
authors.affiliation: Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, Wynnewood, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: James M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Mullin
authors.affiliation: Molecular and Cellular Biology Graduate Program, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts.|Department of Food Science, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Korin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Albert
authors.affiliation: Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, Wynnewood, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: John P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Gilligan
authors.affiliation: Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, Wynnewood, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: Katherine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: DiGuilio
authors.affiliation: Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, Wynnewood, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: Rima
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dilbarova
authors.affiliation: Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, Wynnewood, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: Walker
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Alexander
authors.affiliation: Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, Wynnewood, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: George C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Prendergast
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D064307:Microbiota / Q000502:physiology*