Earlier this month the White House Office of Science and Technology (OSTP), in collaboration with federal agencies and private-sector stakeholders, announced the launch of the National Microbiome Initiative that will seek to increase understanding of microbiome function and improve efforts to preserve and restore microbiomes. The initiative includes a combined federal agency investment of more than $121 million in FYs 2016 and 2017, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH) investing an extra $20 million into microbiome research in grants in FYs 2016-7 with a particular emphasis on multi-ecosystem comparison studies and investigation into design of new tools to explore and understand microbiomes. In addition, more than 100 external institutions are announcing new efforts to support microbiome science. View the White House Fact Sheet.

Last updated: May 18, 2016