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The gut microbiome—an emerging complex trait

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As the first series of genetic analyses of gut microbiome composition in humans is now emerging, the results should be met with enthusiasm, but also with caution. Findings from the initial offerings demonstrate how population-scale approaches can provide deeper insights into host–microbiome interactions while at the same time illustrating that our understanding of the architecture of highly complex microbiome 'traits' is still rudimentary.

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Figure 1: The spectrum of quantitative features of the microbiome giving rise to significant trait associations.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Food Science and Technology, Andrew K. Benson is at the Nebraska Food for Health Center, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA.,

    Andrew K Benson

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  1. Andrew K Benson
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Correspondence to Andrew K Benson.

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Benson, A. The gut microbiome—an emerging complex trait. Nat Genet 48, 1301–1302 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/ng.3707

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