What does microbiota mean?
Microbiota denotes the community of microorganisms associated with a particular place, whether that is the human gut, the skin, soil, water, or another habitat. The word is especially common in medical and biological writing, where the phrase “gut microbiota” describes the diverse bacteria and other microscopic organisms that inhabit the intestines. This community can affect digestion, nutrient processing, immune defence, and metabolic health, although the precise effects of any individual microorganism or group of microorganisms can be difficult to establish. Microbiota also has wider ecological uses: scientists may compare the microbiota of different soils, foods, or bodies. The term should not be confused with “microbiome.” Although the two words are often used interchangeably in general discussion, microbiota more directly names the organisms, while microbiome may encompass the organisms, their genetic material, and the surrounding habitat.
nounThe collective microorganisms inhabiting a particular environment or part of an organism, especially the bacteria and other microbes living in the intestines.
- The collective population of microorganisms living in a particular environment, especially on the skin, in the mouth, or within the digestive tract.
"A diverse microbiota helps maintain the health of the human gut."
"Antibiotics can temporarily disrupt the gut microbiota."
"Researchers compared the soil microbiota of fields treated with different fertilizers."
Microbiota is normally used as an invariant plural or collective noun; microbiotas is a rare plural form.
"Microbiotas from the two habitats showed markedly different species profiles."
Your gut microbiota is a microscopic ecosystem whose changing composition can influence digestion, immunity, and even mood.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does microbiota come from?
Microbiota is a modern scientific formation combining the prefix “micro-,” meaning small, with “biota,” the collective total of living organisms in an environment. The latter comes from Greek bios, meaning “life,” and ultimately from the same root found in words such as biology, microbial, and symbiotic. The compound entered biological usage as a name for communities of microorganisms, and it became especially prominent in medical research concerning the microbial populations of the human body.
Related word forms
How microbiota is actually used
Microbiota is used mainly in biology, medicine, ecology, and food science. In biomedical contexts, it usually refers specifically to bacteria, although the term can more broadly include archaea, fungi, viruses, and other microorganisms. It is often treated as a plural or collective noun.
Easily confused with microbiota
Microbiota refers to the microorganisms themselves, whereas microbiome often refers to the community together with its genes and the environment in which it lives.