Biomarkers derived from the Human Fecal Microbiome in the Context of Pancreatic and Liver Diseases

The human gut microbiome is unique to each individual and contains approximately 100 times more genes than the human genome. Alterations in its composition have been linked to numerous diseases and conditions, including liver disease and pancreatic cancer, highlighting its potential for clinical disease management. However, microbiome-based biomarker applications remain rare and require years of interdisciplinary collaboration and research to develop. In this dissertation, I present projects that cover the entire development of biomarkers derived from the human fecal microbiome. This includes the identification of biomarkers, the advancement of our understanding of these biomarkers, and their translation into industry-compliant and cost-effective detection tests, ultimately bringing them closer to routine application. The work will be presented starting from a global view of the microbiome, zooming in to specific analysis in the context of liver disease, and finally using discovered changes in microbial species to develop targeted biomarker detection tests.