Limitations of Correlation-Based Inference in Complex Virus-Microbe Communities.

ABSTRACT: Microbes are present in high abundances in the environment and in human-associated microbiomes, often exceeding 1 million per ml. Viruses of microbes are present in even higher abundances and are important in shaping microbial populations, communities, and ecosystems. Given the relative specificity of viral infection, it is essential to identify the functional linkages between viruses and their microbial hosts, particularly given dynamic changes in virus and host abundances. Multiple approaches have been proposed to infer infection networks from time series of in situ communities, among which correlation-based approaches have emerged as the de facto standard. In this work, we evaluate the accuracy of correlation-based inference methods using an in silico approach. In d

SUBMITTER: Coenen AR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6113591 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jul-Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature