Online Seminar Series – 16 Jun 2021

SymbNET Online Seminar Series

Monthly seminars on host-microbe symbiosis, genomics, and metabolomics, with two talks from SymbNET researchers.

The seminars are open and free to all, but registration is required.

15:00 WEST / 16:00 CEST  

Speaker: Rob Finn (EMBL)

Affiliation:  Microbiome Informatics, EMBL-EBI, UK

Title: Broadening our genomic knowledge of the human microbiome.

Abstract: The human body is host to trillions of microbes, collectively referred to as the human microbiome, which have adapted to a range of body sites, such as the gut, oral cavity and skin. A variety of factors can affect microbial imbalance, which has a close relationship with human health and disease. Metagenomics, the analysis of the sum of genetic material from a sample, is shedding light on the huge diversity of microbe that occupy these different environments provided by the human host. We have recently published the Unified Human Gastrointestinal Genome (UHGG) catalog, an unprecedented collection of nearly 5,000 gut species found in the gut microbiome, with 70% yet to be cultured. We have also commenced efforts to recover genomes from the human skin microbiome, which not only harbours a very distinct microbial composition compared to the gut, but also carries additional challenges such as low DNA yield. For both microbiomes, we have started investigating the microbiota beyond bacteria, to reveal the complexity of the entire microbiota.

15:30 WEST / 16:30 CEST  

Speaker: Jingtao Lilue (FCG-IGC)

Affiliation: Bioinformatics unit, FCG-IGC, Portugal

Title: Searching for the reason of virus susceptibility from Cotton rat genome

Abstract: The cotton rat (Sigmodon hispidus), a rodent species native to the Americas, has served as a valuable laboratory model for infections by numerous viral pathogens in humans, including poliovirus and respiratory syncytial virus. We have finished the reference assembly of the cotton rat genome at a chromosomal level. From this data we suggest specific genetic innovations unique to this species, involved in viral defence. Compared with other sequenced species, we found these immune related loci are also highly dynamic in other rodent species.