Evolutionary biology, bioinformatics and molecular ecology. Postdoctoral researcher @Smithsonian. I use genomic techniques to study animals and their microbes.
Dec 18, 2020 • 12 tweets • 6 min read
The word #Microbiome is derived from the word "biome", i.e. a distinct environmental habitat, in which microbes occupy and are part of. A Microbiome is therefore a spatially distinct environment with unique bio-physical properties AND its associated microbes. 🦠+🏝️
#Microbiota refers to the microbial members of the microbiome. 🦠 This word is therefore strongly related to this microbial biome but it does not concern the environmental conditions of the specified habitat.
