8.4 Annotated References

This is a new field, so much of the written literature remains in academia, but hopefully the following summary of items to read will be helpful.

Here are my suggestions for additional reading (updated June 2019).

8.4.0.1 Twitter

The best overall account to follow is @MicrobiomDigest. Elizabeth Bik knows everybody and regularly tweets and retweets about most things you need to know to stay up-to-date.

My list of people who regularly write interesting comments about the microbiome is here:

https://twitter.com/sprague/lists/personal-biology

8.4.1 Authors

These popular science writers often write on microbiome-related topics, and you’ll find just about anything valuable if their name is attached:

Ed Yong: subscribe to his weekly newsletter (“The Ed’s Up”) for regular updates on science, especially the microbial world.
Carl Zimmer: long-time science writer who writes carefully-researched books and articles about biology.
Moises Velasquez-Manoff: Regular New York Times journalist and author of An Epidemic of Absence.

8.4.1.1 Best Overview Articles

There are too many good introductory articles to mention, but here are a few that I especially like:

GERMS ARE US BY MICHAEL SPECTER

Germs Are Us: Bacteria make us sick. Do they also keep us alive?: New Yorker article (2012) by Michael Specter

8.4.1.2 Web Sites

http://www.microbiomedigest.com/ A daily digest of scientific microbiome papers, by Elisabeth Bik Twitter: @microbiomdigest

Gut Microbiota Research and Practice

Microbiology of the Built Environment Network: Although the site is funded by a grant to study “microbes present in buildings”, much of the content is relevant to the human microbiome, and the scientists who regularly post there are top notch.

The Gut Institute The main site for Grace Liu, a PharmD and microbiome nerd. Especially worth listening to her podcasts from 2015-16.

Reddit has several forums that are worth watching for latest news:

The Quantified Body a two-hour discussion about labs for microbiome testing, includes a full transcript and charts for comparison.