Figure 4. Plot of the variability of the 16S gene within the oral microbiome.

668 full-length 16S sequences selected to comprehensively represent the oral microbiome were aligned. The Shannon entropy index (H’) was calculated for each base position, and mean information entropy for primer-sized and amplicon-sized windows along the length of the sequence were plotted. Variable and conserved regions can be visualized. (Because of gaps inserted in the alignment the numbering does not correspond directly to E. coli numbering.)