The Gut Mycobiome for Precision Medicine

Abstract

The human gastrointestinal tract harbors a vast array of microorganisms, which play essential roles in maintaining metabolic balance and immune function. While bacteria dominate the gut microbiome, fungi represent a much smaller, often overlooked fraction. Despite their relatively low abundance, fungi may significantly influence both health and disease. Advances in next-generation sequencing, metagenomics, metatranscriptomics, metaproteomics, metabolomics, and computational biology have provided novel opportunities to study the gut mycobiome, shedding light on its composition, functional genes, and metabolite interactions. Emerging evidence links fungal dysbiosis to various diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease, colorectal cancer, metabolic disorders, and neurological conditions. The gut mycobiome also presents a promising avenue for precision medicine, particularly in biomarker discovery, disease diagnostics, and targeted therapeutics. Nonetheless, significant challenges remain in effectively integrating gut mycobiome knowledge into clinical practice. This review examines gut fungal microbiota, highlighting analytical methods, associations with human diseases, and its potential role in precision medicine. It also discusses pathways for clinical translation, particularly in diagnosis and treatment, while addressing key barriers to implementation.