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Encyclopedia of Metagenomics pp 439–442Cite as

Metagenomics, Metadata, and Meta-analysis

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Synonyms

Comparative analysis; Contextual data; Environmental data; Network analysis; Shotgun metagenomics

Definition

The analytical approach of identifying emergent patterns in ecological properties of microbial communities by sequencing community structure and function and defining the physical, chemical, and biological parameters of the ecosystem.

Metagenomics is the study of all genetic material from all organisms in a defined sample (Handelsman et al. 1998). However, it is defined: metagenomics is just a term used to describe a selection of tools and techniques that enable us to uncover the DNA from the organisms in an environment (which can comprise any ecosystem, from soil to human intestinal tract). Metadata (also known as contextual data) refers directly to information regarding the original sample, the extraction and handling of the DNA, and the sequencing platform and data processing information (Field et al. 2011; Yilmaz et al. 2011). Without such metadata, metagenomic...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ecology & Evolution, University of Chicago, 1101 East 57th Street, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA

    Jack Gilbert

Authors
  1. Jack Gilbert
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jack Gilbert .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. J. Craig Venter Institute, Rockville, MD, USA

    Karen E. Nelson

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Gilbert, J. (2015). Metagenomics, Metadata, and Meta-analysis. In: Nelson, K.E. (eds) Encyclopedia of Metagenomics. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-7478-5_17

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