TABLE 1.
Factors to consider in population recruitment for a pharmacomicrobiomic analysis
| Factor | Finding | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| Aging | ||
| Adulthood | Temporal stability 30 | Consider selecting an age range, take multiple measurements if not studying adults |
| Frailty | Reduced diversity of core microbiota 42 | Consider setting a maximum age for enrollment or studying an older population separately |
| Antibiotic use | Compositional changes (i.e., decreased Bacteroides 52 ) | Consider a minimum time since antibiotics of at least 4 weeks |
| Concomitant medications | ||
| Metformin | Compositional differences (i.e., increased Akkermansia muciniphila 24 ) | Collect medication history information |
| Proton pump inhibitors | Stark compositional differences (i.e., increased Streptococcaceae 23 ) | Collect medication history |
| Diet | The microbiome adapts to a participant’s diet 58 | Obtain dietary records/recalls or utilize standardized meal plans |
| Medical conditions | ||
| Inflammatory bowel diseases | Loss in species diversity 43 , 44 | Collect medical history, consider exclusion |
| Cancer | Dysbiosis compared to healthy controls 49 , 50 | Collect medical history, consider exclusion |
| Autoimmune disease | Dysbiosis compared to healthy controls 46 , 47 | Collect medical history, consider exclusion |