Long-read sequencing (LRS) has driven a transition in microbial genomics, overcoming the assembly fragmentation inherent to short-read sequencing. This review elucidates the impact of LRS across isolate genomics, metagenomics, and multi-omics domains. By spanning extensive repetitive regions, LRS facilitates the reconstruction of circular chromosomes and precisely resolves mobile genetic elements (MGEs). In metagenomics, LRS enables strain-level resolution, the recovery of circular metagenome-assembled genomes, and the precise localization of MGEs within host replicons. Furthermore, the single-molecule, amplification-free properties of LRS provide enhanced resolution of native epigenetic modifications and full-length transcriptomes. Despite these advancements, widespread implementation remains constrained by multidimensional challenges, including stringent high-molecular-weight DNA requirements, depth deficits, and computational overhead. Nevertheless, LRS is increasingly becoming the method of choice for isolate genomics and metagenomics. As detection technologies and algorithms progress, LRS will further improve our ability to decipher the structural and functional diversity of microbial ecosystems.
Xing Rao, Yu-He Gu, Gabriella et al.· GigaScience· 0 citations
Metabolic interactions govern gut microbiome assembly, yet their functional rules remain obscured by genomic incompleteness and fragmentation. Here, we leverage 1,150 complete genomes to construct genome-scale metabolic models, demonstrating that draft assemblies introduce systematic artifacts and omit critical transport functions. We observe that genomic traits and niche specialization, rather than random association, shape microbial metabolic competition and complementarity. Interaction asymmetry stratifies strains into four ecological groups, including active players, resource predators, resource utilizers, and resource contributors, with distinct signatures of metabolite exchange, competition, and secondary metabolism. In inflammatory bowel disease, these groups show subtype-specific temporal instability, and group-specific dysbiosis predicts clinical phenotypes better than the whole-community profiles. Keystone features derived from integrated metabolic interaction and co-occurrence networks also improve cross-validated disease classification. Together, these findings connect genome completeness with microbial ecological organization and provide a framework for linking metabolic interactions to microbiome-associated disease.
Yu-He Gu, Haoyu Wang, Jin-Long Yang et al.· Cell Reports· 0 citations
Genomic and phenotypic results supported the potentials of BGI-N8 and BGI-N9 as candidate probiotic strains with distinct complementary strengths in glycolipid regulation, providing a theoretical basis for their synergistic application.
Jia-Yi Ma, Zhihui Ma, Xinyu Yang et al.· Microorganisms· 0 citations