The Promise of Microbiome for Medicine & Public Health

Curtis Huttenhower, Associate Professor of Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, believes that microbiome research is poised to revolutionize public health. Recent advances in molecular technology and the declining cost of genetic sequencing have led to new understandings of the role of the microbiome, at both the large population scale and the precision-medicine end of the spectrum. According to Huttenhower, learning about the diversity of the microbiome on a population scale might help us to better support its development through public health practices, while at the individual level, it could lead to more accurate treatments or preventative measures. For more about the public health potential of the microbiome, check out this recent article in the Harvard Public Health Magazine.