Synthetic microbial communities (SynComs) of the human gut: design, assembly, and applications.

The human gut harbors native microbial communities, forming a highly complex ecosystem. Synthetic microbial communities (SynComs) of the human gut are an assembly of microorganisms isolated from human mucosa or fecal samples. In recent decades, the ever-expanding culturing capacity and affordable sequencing, together with advanced computational modeling, started a ''golden age'' for harnessing the beneficial potential of SynComs to fight gastrointestinal disorders, such as infections and chronic inflammatory bowel diseases.

Interspecies Interactions between and .

The facultative anaerobic polymorphic fungus and the strictly anaerobic Gram-positive bacterium are two opportunistic pathogens residing in the human gut. While a few studies have focused on the prevalence of in -infected patients, the nature of the interactions between these two microbes has not been studied thus far. In the current study, both chemical and physical interactions between and were investigated.