Individually and collectively, resident microbes play important roles in host health and survival. Shaping and shaped by their host environments, these microorganisms form intricate communities that are in a state of dynamic equilibrium. This ecologic and dynamic view of host-microbe interactions is rapidly redefining our view of health and disease. It is now accepted that the vast majority of microbes are, for the most part, not intrinsically harmful, but rather become established as persistent, co-adapted colonists in equilibrium with their environment, providing useful goods and services to their hosts while deriving benefits from these host associations. Disruption of such alliances may have consequences for host health, and investigations in a wide variety of organisms have begun to illuminate the complex and dynamic network of interaction - across the spectrum of hosts, microbes, and environmental niches - that influence the formation, function, and stability of host-associated microbial communities.

Microbial Ecology in States of Health and Disease is the summary of a workshop convened by the Institute of Medicine's Forum on Microbial Threats in March 2013 to explore the scientific and therapeutic implications of microbial ecology in states of health and disease. Participants explored host-microbe interactions in humans, animals, and plants; emerging insights into how microbes may influence the development and maintenance of states of health and disease; the effects of environmental change(s) on the formation, function, and stability of microbial communities; and research challenges and opportunities for this emerging field of inquiry.

Contents

• THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES
• PLANNING COMMITTEE FOR A WORKSHOP ON MICROBIAL ECOLOGY IN STATES OF HEALTH AND DISEASE
• FORUM ON MICROBIAL THREATS
• BOARD ON GLOBAL HEALTH
• Reviewers
• Acknowledgments
• Workshop Overview
  • MICROBIAL ECOLOGY IN STATES OF HEALTH AND DISEASE
  • HUMANS, ANIMALS, AND PLANTS IN A MICROBIAL WORLD
  • CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES
  • References
• Appendixes
  • Appendix A Contributed Manuscripts
  • Appendix B Agenda
  • Appendix C Acronyms
  • Appendix D Glossary
  • Appendix E Speaker Biographies

Rapporteurs: Eileen R. Choffnes, Leigh Anne Olsen, and Alison Mack.

Financial support for this activity was provided by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food and Drug Administration, and the Fogarty International Center; U.S. Department of Defense: Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center, Defense Threat Reduction Agency, and Medical Research and Materiel Command; U.S. Department of Justice: Federal Bureau of Investigation; U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; U.S. Department of Homeland Security; U.S. Agency for International Development; Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences; Alfred P. Sloan Foundation; American Society for Microbiology; Burroughs Wellcome Fund; GlaxoSmithKline; Infectious Diseases Society of America; Johnson & Johnson; Merck Company Foundation; and sanofi pasteur. The views presented in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations or agencies that provided support for this activity.

Suggested citation:

IOM (Institute of Medicine). 2014. Microbial ecology in states of health and disease: Workshop summary. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

NOTICE: The workshop that is the subject of this workshop summary was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.