Herpetofauna's Hidden Helpers: Exploring Microbiota

Symbiotic microbes greatly influence the health of their hosts. Amphibians and reptiles play a vital role in the animal kingdom's history and hold significant ecological, economic, and scientific value. Previous studies have shown that the microbiota in these animals are closely connected to their evolutionary lineage, physical traits, and environmental conditions. However, the lack of comprehensive databases has made it difficult for scientists to access and reanalyze this crucial information.

To address this, a new database called HMicroDB (https://herpdb. com/) has been created. It brings together over 11, 000 microbiological samples from 337 different species, covering 23 body sites and related to 23 different host characteristics or environmental factors. The database has identified 11, 084 distinct microbial taxa through consistent annotation. HMicroDB offers standardized analysis, cross-dataset integration, and a user-friendly interface, making it easy for researchers to explore the relationships between microbiota, hosts, and their environments. This tool can greatly benefit studies on the coevolution of hosts and microbiota, biological conservation, and resource management.

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