Microbes within the gut vary in how they encode genes, both in terms of the genetic codes and gene structures, which are often unexplored in metagenomic analysis. Here, the authors develop a lineage-specific gene approach that optimizes prediction of small proteins and apply it to 9,634 metagenomes and 3,594 genomes from the human gut, increasing the landscape of captured expressed microbial proteins by 78.9%, including previously hidden functional groups.
- Matthias A. Schmitz
- Nicholas J. Dimonaco
- Thomas C. A. Hitch
