mbQTL

mbQTL provides R/Bioconductor methods to estimate microbial quantitative trait loci (mbQTLs) by associating host single-nucleotide variants (SNVs/SNPs) with microbial abundances derived from 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) sequencing data.

Key Features:

• Integration of Genomic and Microbiome Data: Integrates host genotype data (SNVs and SNPs) with microbial abundance profiles from 16S rRNA sequencing for combined analyses.
• Statistical Methods: Implements a variety of statistical association methods to identify microbe–SNV/SNP pairs and estimate mbQTL effects.
• Statistical Measures: Computes relevant statistical measures to quantify and interpret associations between host genetics and microbial populations.
• Visualization: Provides plotting functionality to visualize microbe–genotype associations and statistical results.

Scientific Applications:

• Disease Research: Identify genetic variants that influence microbiome composition to investigate mechanisms of disease development and progression.
• Personalized Medicine: Characterize host genetic effects on microbial abundance that may inform individual responses to therapeutic interventions.
• Microbiome Studies: Support analyses of host–microbe interactions and determinants of microbial community composition.

Methodology:

Integrates 16S rRNA sequencing data with SNV/SNP genotype data and applies statistical association methods to identify microbe–SNV pairs, compute statistical measures, and generate plots.