Theory of host-microbe symbioses: Challenges and opportunities

Affiliations

¹ Section of Genetic Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
² Center for Microbial Dynamics and Infection, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA; School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA. Electronic address: mmartignoni3@gatech.edu.
³ Hawai'i Institute of Marine Biology, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Kāne'ohe, HI, USA.
⁴ Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.
⁵ Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA; Department of Biology, Center for Genomics and Systems Biology, New York University, New York City, NY, USA.
⁶ Department of Mathematics and the Center for the Mathematics of Biosystems, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA.
⁷ Department of Mathematics and Mathematical Statistics, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden, Integrated Science Lab, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
⁸ The Ecosystems Center, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA, USA.
⁹ Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33146, USA; Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, USA.
¹⁰ Departments of Biology and Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA; One Health Microbiome Center, Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA. Electronic address: s.bordenstein@psu.edu.
¹¹ Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, University of Hawaii, Kāne'ohe, HI 96744, USA; Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA. Electronic address: joaner@hawaii.edu.

PMID: 40639335
DOI: 10.1016/j.chom.2025.05.001

Theory of host-microbe symbioses: Challenges and opportunities

Pamela Ferretti et al. Cell Host Microbe. 2025.

. 2025 Jul 9;33(7):1052-1056.

doi: 10.1016/j.chom.2025.05.001.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Section of Genetic Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
² Center for Microbial Dynamics and Infection, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA; School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA. Electronic address: mmartignoni3@gatech.edu.
³ Hawai'i Institute of Marine Biology, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Kāne'ohe, HI, USA.
⁴ Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.
⁵ Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA; Department of Biology, Center for Genomics and Systems Biology, New York University, New York City, NY, USA.
⁶ Department of Mathematics and the Center for the Mathematics of Biosystems, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA.
⁷ Department of Mathematics and Mathematical Statistics, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden, Integrated Science Lab, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
⁸ The Ecosystems Center, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA, USA.
⁹ Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33146, USA; Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, USA.
¹⁰ Departments of Biology and Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA; One Health Microbiome Center, Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA. Electronic address: s.bordenstein@psu.edu.
¹¹ Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, University of Hawaii, Kāne'ohe, HI 96744, USA; Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA. Electronic address: joaner@hawaii.edu.

PMID: 40639335
DOI: 10.1016/j.chom.2025.05.001

Abstract

Growing insight into microbial symbioses highlights the need to model these systems mathematically. We discuss three areas requiring theoretical advancement: nested ecology within a host or holobiont, holobiont population dynamics, and symbiont-mediated speciation. Developing the proposed frameworks will bridge theory and empirical findings, accelerating our understanding of host-microbe symbioses.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of interests The authors declare no competing interests.

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Theory of host-microbe symbioses: Challenges and opportunities

Affiliations

Theory of host-microbe symbioses: Challenges and opportunities

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources

Full Text Sources