New CRC publication in Nature communications:
Lineage-specific microbial protein prediction enables large-scale exploration of protein ecology within the human gut
A recent publication in the prestigious journal Nature Communications has been selected as “Paper of the Month” by the committee at Aachen University Hospital. The lead author of the paper is our doctoral student Matthias Schmitz (Project B01).
Microbes use many different genetic codes and gene structures, but these are often ignored during metagenomic analysis. This causes incorrect protein predictions and limits functional assignment. To address this, a lineage-specific gene prediction approach was developed that uses the correct genetic code based on taxonomic assignment, removes incomplete protein predictions, and improves the prediction of small proteins. This led to an enhanced human gut microbial protein catalogue (MiProGut) and the tool InvestiGUT, which integrates protein sequences with sample metadata to study prevalence and associations with host parameters.
Congratulations to all authors involved on this fantastic publication!