The wound microbiome

The wound microbiome consists of living microbial communities (“microbiota”) that interact with each other and their surroundings in the injured tissue. The role of the wound microbiota in impaired healing and progression to infection-related complications is an area of active investigation, which has benefited from advances in next-generation sequencing methods. Here, we discuss these methods and approaches, while highlighting the advances in understanding afforded by each. Amplicon-based sequencing (e.g., bacterial 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing) and metagenomic shotgun sequencing approaches have revealed the previously underappreciated microbial diversity in diabetic wounds, the stability of microbiota over time, responses to interventions, and associations with clinical outcomes. These findings have implications for fundamental understanding of host-microbial interactions during diabetic wound healing as well as the management and treatment of diabetic wounds.