How accurately can we assess zoonotic risk?

Identifying the animal reservoirs from which zoonotic viruses will likely emerge is central to understanding the determinants of disease emergence. Accordingly, there has been an increase in studies attempting zoonotic "risk assessment." Herein, we demonstrate that the virological data on which these analyses are conducted are incomplete, biased, and rapidly changing with ongoing virus discovery. Together, these shortcomings suggest that attempts to assess zoonotic risk using available virological data are likely to be inaccurate and largely only identify those host taxa that have been studied most extensively. We suggest that virus surveillance at the human-animal interface may be more productive.

A review of 10 years of human microbiome research activities at the US National Institutes of Health, Fiscal Years 2007-2016.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary federal government agency for biomedical research in the USA. NIH provides extensive support for human microbiome research with 21 of 27 NIH Institutes and Centers (ICs) currently funding this area through their extramural research programs. This analysis of the NIH extramural portfolio in human microbiome research briefly reviews the early history of this field at NIH, summarizes the program objectives and the resources developed in the recently completed 10-year (fiscal years 2007-2016) $215 M Human Microbiome Project (HMP) program, evaluates the scope and range of the $728 M NIH investment in extramural human microbiome research activities outside of the HMP over fiscal years 2012-2016, and highlights some specific areas of research which emerged from this investment. This analysis closes with a few comments on the technical needs and knowledge gaps which remain for this field to be able to advance over the next decade and for the outcomes of this research to be able to progress to microbiome-based interventions for treating disease and supporting health.

Aerially transmitted human fungal pathogens: what can we learn from metagenomics and comparative genomics? / Hongos de transmisión aérea patógenos para el ser humano: conocimientos adquiridos a partir de su metagenómica y genómica comparativa

In the last few decades, aerially transmitted human fungal pathogens have been increasingly recognized to impact the clinical course of chronic pulmonary diseases, such as asthma, cystic fibrosis or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Thanks to recent development of culture-free high-throughput sequencing methods, the metagenomic approaches are now appropriate to detect, identify and even quantify prokaryotic or eukaryotic microorganism communities inhabiting human respiratory tract and to access the complexity of even low-burden microbe communities that are likely to play a role in chronic pulmonary diseases. In this review, we explore how metagenomics and comparative genomics studies can alleviate fungal culture bottlenecks, improve our knowledge about fungal biology, lift the veil on cross-talks between host lung and fungal microbiota, and gain insights into the pathogenic impact of these aerially transmitted fungi that affect human beings. We reviewed metagenomic studies and comparative genomic analyses of carefully chosen microorganisms, and confirmed the usefulness of such approaches to better delineate biology and pathogenesis of aerially transmitted human fungal pathogens. Efforts to generate and efficiently analyze the enormous amount of data produced by such novel approaches have to be pursued, and will potentially provide the patients suffering from chronic pulmonary diseases with a better management. This manuscript is part of the series of works presented at the "V International Workshop: Molecular genetic approaches to the study of human pathogenic fungi" (Oaxaca, Mexico, 2012) (AU)

En las últimas décadas se ha reconocido cada vez más la influencia de los hongos patógenos para el ser humano, y cuya transmisión es aérea, en el curso clínico de afecciones pulmonares crónicas, como el asma, la fibrosis quística o la enfermedad pulmonar obstructiva crónica. Gracias al desarrollo reciente de métodos de secuenciación de alto rendimiento, que no requieren cultivo, en la actualidad los análisis metagenómicos permiten detectar, identificar e incluso cuantificar comunidades de microorganismos procariotas o eucariotas que habitan en las vías respiratorias del ser humano, y acceder a la complejidad de las comunidades microbianas cuya población es de baja densidad, que posiblemente desempeñan un papel en las enfermedades pulmonares crónicas. En la presente revisión examinamos cómo los estudios metagenómicos y genómicos comparativos pueden ayudar a superar los obstáculos de los cultivos de hongos, mejorar nuestros conocimientos sobre la biología fúngica, desvelar el diálogo cruzado (crosstalk) entre el pulmón del huésped y la microbiota fúngica asociada, y adquirir información sobre la influencia patogénica de estos hongos transmitidos por el aire que afectan al ser humano. Revisamos los estudios metagenómicos y los análisis genómicos comparativos de microorganismos cuidadosamente seleccionados, y confirmamos la utilidad de estas estrategias para definir mejor la biología y la patogenia de hongos de transmisión aérea que son patógenos para el ser humano. Los esfuerzos por generar y analizar eficientemente la ingente cantidad de datos obtenidos con estos nuevos métodos deberán continuar, y es posible que ofrezcan un mejor tratamiento de los pacientes portadores de enfermedades pulmonares crónicas.Este manuscrito forma parte de la serie de artículos presentados en el «V International Workshop: Molecular genetic approaches to the study of human pathogenic fungi» (Oaxaca, México, 2012) (AU)

Population biobanking in selected European countries and proposed model for a Polish national DNA bank.

Population biobanks offer new opportunities for public health, are rudimentary for the development of its new branch called Public Health Genomics, and are important for translational research. This article presents organizational models of population biobanks in selected European countries. Review of bibliography and websites of European population biobanks (UK, Spain, Estonia). Some countries establish national genomic biobanks (DNA banks) in order to conduct research on new methods of prevention, diagnosis and treatment of the genetic and lifestyle diseases and on pharmacogenetic research. Individual countries have developed different organizational models of these institutions and specific legal regulations regarding various ways of obtaining genetic data from the inhabitants, donors' rights, organizational and legal aspects. Population biobanks in European countries were funded in different manners. In light of these solutions, the authors discuss prospects of establishing a Polish national genomic biobank for research purpose. They propose the creation of such an institution based on the existing network of blood-donation centres and clinical biobanks in Poland.