Microbiomes as Active Regulators Across Body Axes

Microbiomes are increasingly recognized not only as local microbial communities but also as active regulators of host biology across interconnected body systems. Through metabolic activity, immune modulation, endocrine signaling, and neural communication, microbiomes can influence physiological processes well beyond their primary sites of residence. These cross-axis interactions are becoming central to our understanding of health, disease, and host–microbe relationships in complex biological systems.Recent advances in systems biology, multi-omics, and computational modeling have made it possible to study these interactions in a more integrated way. Rather than viewing microbiomes as isolated contributors to local function, researchers can now investigate how microbial communities participate in broader regulatory networks linking the gut, skin, lung, oral cavity, reproductive tract, and other microbial niches with distal organs and systemic processes. This perspective is opening new opportunities to understand microbial influence across immune, metabolic, neurological, and developmental axes.This Research Topic aims to bring together original research, reviews, and perspective articles that explore microbiomes as active regulators across body axes in humans, animals, and other biological systems. We welcome contributions that examine the mechanisms, dynamics, and functional consequences of microbiome-mediated communication across tissues and organ systems, as well as studies that apply systems-level or multi-omics approaches to uncover these relationships.By highlighting emerging concepts and integrative methodologies, this collection seeks to advance our understanding of microbiomes as dynamic components of interconnected biological networks, with relevance for physiology, disease mechanisms, diagnostics, and intervention strategies.Relevant themes include, but are not limited to:• Gut–brain, gut–liver, gut–lung, gut–oral, gut–skin, and other microbiome-related body axes• Microbiome-driven immune, endocrine, metabolic, and neural regulation• Cross-talk between distinct microbial niches within the same host• Systems biology and multi-omics approaches to host–microbiome interactions• Microbiomes in systemic disease, inflammation, and dysbiosis• Microbial metabolites and signaling molecules in inter-organ communication• Stability and consistency of microbial biomarkers across multiple body sites in cross-sectional studies• Comparative and translational studies across human, animal, and environmental systems• Predictive modeling and network-based approaches to microbiome regulation Topic editors: Emad M Abdallah, Samy Selim, Samiah Hamad Al-Mijalli Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/81007/microbiomes-as-active-regulators-across-body-axes