Genomic and ecological approaches to identify the prototype of the healthy human gut microbiota.

Members of the genus are among the first microorganisms colonizing the human gut. Among these species, strains of are known to be commonly transmitted from mother to her newborn, while this species has also been linked with activities supporting human wellbeing. In the current study, an approach, guided by ecology- and phylogenome-based analyses, was employed to identify a representative strain of to be exploited as a novel health-promoting candidate. The selected strain, i.e., PRL2012, was found to well represent the genetic content and functional genomic features of the taxon. We evaluated the ability of PRL2012 to survive in the gastrointestinal tract and to interact with other human gut commensal microbes. When co-cultivated with various human gut commensals, PRL2012 revealed an enhancement of its metabolic activity coupled with the activation of cellular defense mechanisms to apparently improve its survivability in a simulated ecosystem resembling the human microbiome.