Edited by: Christopher Staley, University of Minnesota, USA (BMC Microbiology)
Jacques Ravel, University of Maryland, USA (Microbiome)
Sean Devlin, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, USA (BMC Cancer)
BMC Cancer, BMC Microbiology and Microbiome jointly present the ‘Microbiome and Cancer’ collection.
With microbiome research moving from a predominantly data-driven field towards understanding its contribution at a more mechanistic level, the impact of the microbiome on health and human disease has surfaced. At the same time, cancer research has diversified its approach with increasing emphasis for a multifaceted treatment model to ensure effective treatment towards a cure. As the intersection of the two fields, the role of the microbiome in cancer disease predisposition, risk, initiation, progression, diagnosis, prognosis and treatment is becoming increasingly apparent and a new focus of research. In recognition of this important and growing field of research, we hereby present a collection of primary research articles and reviews on the topic of ‘Microbiome and cancer’.
Submissions broadly cover the following research areas:
- cancer microbiome,
- effect of the microbiome on cancer initiation, tumorigenesis and progression
- microbiome-driven increased cancer risk or predisposition
- the evolving role of microbiome modulation products
- microbiome-driven changes in the metabolic and physiologic states in the tumor microenvironment,
- biology of cancers triggered by microbiome-driven immune modulations
- metabolomics and metagenomic studies at the interface of microbiome and cancer
- the microbiome as a biomarker
- the effect of gut and tissue microbiomes on cancer therapy
- the role of the cancer microbiome in therapy resistance
Our Guest Editors:
Christopher Staley
The intestinal microbiota is a vital organ critical to the development, functioning, and health of the human the host. The Staley Lab at University of Minnesota research focus is to characterize how disruptions in this community affect the onset and progression of diseases and conditions e.g., obesity, colorectal cancer, and inflammatory bowel diseases. By applying microbial ecology principles and leveraging next-generation sequencing technologies, their goal is to develop targeted, microbiota-based therapies to improve patient outcomes. Chris is a Senior Board Member for BMC Microbiology.
Jacques Ravel
Jacques Ravel is a Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology and the Associate Director for Genomics at the Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, MD. His research program is focused on applying modern genomics technologies and ecological principles to characterize the role and dynamics of the microbial communities inhabiting the human body in health and disease and better define the interactions between the host, the microbes and the environment that drive these ecological systems.
Sean Devlin
Sean Devlin is a Assistant Professor in Biostatistics as Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre. His research interests are in the development of adaptive and nonparametric regression methods for cancer research. He was involved in developing a novel algorithm to refine and improve the discriminatory ability of an existing prognostic classifier by incorporating new genomic markers for censored survival data. His current research interests also include developing risk scores for high dimensional survival data when multiple markers may predict treatment response. Sean is a Senior Board Member for BMC Cancer.