Genetic manipulation is necessary to interrogate the functions of microbes in their environments, such as the human gut microbiome. Yet, the vast majority of human gut microbiome species are not genetically tractable. Here, we review the hurdles to seizing genetic control of more species. We address the barriers preventing the application of genetic techniques to gut microbes and report on genetic systems currently under development. While methods aimed at genetically transforming many species simultaneously in situ show promise, they are unable to overcome many of the same challenges that exist for individual microbes. Unless a major conceptual breakthrough emerges, the genetic tractability of the microbiome will remain an arduous task. Increasing the list of genetically tractable organisms from the human gut remains one of the highest priorities for microbiome research and will provide the foundation for microbiome engineering.

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迈向微生物组工程：扩展人类肠道微生物组的遗传易处理成员的库

基因操作对于探究环境中微生物（例如人类肠道微生物组）的功能是必要的。然而，绝大多数人类肠道微生物物种在遗传上是不易控制的。在这里，我们回顾了夺取更多物种基因控制的障碍。我们解决了阻碍遗传技术应用于肠道微生物的障碍，并报告了目前正在开发的遗传系统。虽然旨在同时原位基因改造许多物种的方法显示出希望，但它们无法克服单个微生物存在的许多相同挑战。除非出现重大的概念性突破，否则微生物组的遗传易处理性仍将是一项艰巨的任务。增加人类肠道中遗传上易处理的微生物列表仍然是微生物组研究的最高优先事项之一，并将为微生物组工程奠定基础。