Microbiome Metadata Standards: Report of the National Microbiome Data Collaborative's Workshop and Follow-On Activities.
Pajau VangayJosephine BurginAnjanette JohnstonKristen L BeckDaniel C BerriosKai BlumbergShane CanonPatrick ChainJohn-Marc ChandoniaDanielle ChristiansonSylvain V CostesJoan DamerowWilliam D DuncanJosé Pablo Dundore-AriasKjiersten FagnanJonathan M GalazkaSean M GibbonsDavid HaysWilliam Judson HerveyBin HuBonnie L HurwitzPankaj JaiswalMarcin P JoachimiakLinda KinkelJoshua LadauStanton L MartinLee Ann McCueKayd MillerNigel MounceyChris MungallEvangelos PafilisT B K ReddyLorna RichardsonSimon RouxLynn M. SchrimlJustin P ShafferJagadish Chandrabose SundaramurthiLuke R ThompsonRuth E TimmeJie ZhengElisha M Wood-CharlsonEmiley A Eloe-FadroshPublished in: mSystems (2021)
Microbiome samples are inherently defined by the environment in which they are found. Therefore, data that provide context and enable interpretation of measurements produced from biological samples, often referred to as metadata, are critical. Important contributions have been made in the development of community-driven metadata standards; however, these standards have not been uniformly embraced by the microbiome research community. To understand how these standards are being adopted, or the barriers to adoption, across research domains, institutions, and funding agencies, the National Microbiome Data Collaborative (NMDC) hosted a workshop in October 2019. This report provides a summary of discussions that took place throughout the workshop, as well as outcomes of the working groups initiated at the workshop.