Dorothy Marie Palomares

Over trillions of microorganisms comprise the human microbiome within the body. Not only does it play a vital role in human health, but the microbiome’s composition varies in individuals. Reports of diseases have been linked to a disequilibrium of the human microbiome — especially in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). GIT carries the largest and most diverse microbial cell population. The health of the gut microbiota and the interaction between host and microbiota determines the individual’s status of health or disease. Profiling the fecal microbiome can reflect the health of GIT microbiota. In order to learn the normal human gut microbiome, fecal microbiota was characterized and profiled in this study. Four fecal samples were collected from normal healthy individuals, the microbial cells were isolated and propagated, DNA from the cultured microbial cells was isolated, quantified, and amplified for fecal microbiome genetic analysis. The interaction between the isolated fecal microbial population and human GIT epithelial cell line – Caco2 was enabled by a microfluidic Gut-on-a-Chip in-vitro system, HuMiX. Herein, we present some initial results obtained. 3 major phyla were identified in the four fecal samples: Bacteroides, FAFV, and Proteobacteria. Several positive GIT epithelial cell markers were demonstrated. Detailed fecal microbiome profile analysis is in process.