Intestinal fungi shape the biology of the mammalian gut

Intestinal fungi shape important aspects of mammalian gut biology, including immune development [1,2], bacterial microbiome assembly [3,4], and metabolism [5].While still neglected in most microbiome studies, gut fungi have been linked to various human diseases including inflammatory bowel disease [2,6,7], pancreatic cancer [8], and liver disease [9,10], among other conditions.It is clear, then, that the fungal community that inhabits our bodies-often referred to as the mycobiome-plays important roles in health and disease.However, basic features of the intestinal mycobiome, such as which fungal taxa can truly be considered gut residents or how they modulate human traits of interest, have remained underexplored.In this Pearls review, we highlight recent developments that provide some answers to these fundamental questions.We also outline opportunities to advance our understanding of the intestinal fungal community and its interplay with the mammalian host.