Community Dynamics in a Changing World: Highlights from the 1st Puerto Rico & Caribbean Microbiome Symposium and vision for a new microbiome hub

Abstract The Puerto Rico Center for Microbiome Sciences (PR-CMS) seeks to become a leading hub for multi-omics research and host–microbiota symbiosis in the Caribbean. As part of this effort, PR-CMS organizes an annual symposium that convenes international leaders, regional experts, and the local scientific community to address key challenges in microbiome science. The 1st Microbiome Symposium of Puerto Rico and the Caribbean, titled “Community Dynamics in a Changing World,” took place in San Juan in February 2026. The event brought together more than 200 participants, including researchers, trainees, and stakeholders from clinical, environmental, computational, and translational fields. Topics highlighted the role of microbiomes in human health, disease, biodiversity, and ecosystem resilience, covering host–microbiome interactions, cancer, infectious diseases, diet–immune dynamics, environmental microbiology, and bioinformatics. Through keynote talks, invited presentations, and student research, the symposium emphasized integrating multi-omics, data science, and translational approaches. It strengthened collaborative networks locally and globally, positioning PR-CMS as a regional leader in microbiome innovation. This meeting report also emphasizes the vision and mission of the Puerto Rico Center for Microbiome Sciences as a new regional and global hub for the study of biodiversity.