From “synthetic” to defined microbial communities for clearer terminology

Koch, H.; Clavel, T.; Mayr, C.; Coltman, B.L.; Schloter, M.; Vorholt, J.A.; ... ; Sessitsch, A. (2026)

Article / Letter to editor

Consortia of microbial isolates, also known as synthetic communities (SynComs), are increasingly used to study and harness microbe-microbe and microbe-host interactions. Since “synthetic” potentially evokes negative connotations, we propose adopting the term “Defined Microbial Community” for practical applications.

• All authors: Koch, H.; Clavel, T.; Mayr, C.; Coltman, B.L.; Schloter, M.; Vorholt, J.A.; Sanz, Y.; Cernava, T.; Beattie, G.A.; Lange, L.; Chaillou, S.; Kovács, Á.T.; Smidt, H.; Pieterse, C.M.J.; Kostic, T.; Finkel, O.M.; Lawson, C.E.; Cocolin, L.; Mercado-Blanco, J.; Finn, R.D.; Papadopoulou, K.K.; Ryan, M.; Candela, M.; Cotter, P.D.; Berg, G.; O’Sullivan, O.; Delgado-Baquerizo, M.; Trivedi, P.; Charles, T.C.; Singh, B.K.; Brader, G.; Marian, M.; Sessitsch, A.
• Date: 2026-06-08
• Journal: Nature Communications
• Volume: 17
• DOI: doi:10.1038/s41467-026-74251-1
• Link: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-74251-1