You are not just yourself. You are also the thousands of
microbes that you carry. In fact, they represent an invisible majority that may
be more you than you realize.
These microscopic fellow travelers are collectively called
the microbiome. Realization that every species of plant and animal is
accompanied by a distinctive microbiome is old news. But evidence of the impact
that these microbes have on their hosts continues to grow rapidly in areas
ranging from brain development to digestion to defense against infection to
producing bodily odors.