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This course is primarily focused on providing conceptual and methodological tools to understand how diet and the gut microbiome converge to impact the physiological landscape of animals and humans, considering diet, host and microbiome as one highly integrated system. To that end, the course relies on concepts of data analysis, gastrointestinal microbiology, the breadth of scientific literature produced up to date and hands on experiences to immerse attendants in the ever-growing microbiome field and open them to consider a microbiome lens to address different research questions in their respective fields.

The course emphasizes three main conceptual areas:

1. Compositional and functional organization of microbial communities in the mammalian gut: From cells to functional communities.
2. Dietary drivers of the mammalian gut microbiome: Nutritional Ecology in the mammalian gut
3. Host-microbiome interactions: Physiological impact of the mammalian gut microbiome

Rather than memorizing these concepts, the course emphasizes the need to apply them to real life issues in animal and human nutrition and health. As such, recognizing these conceptual areas in context, and using them for problem solving in their respective research areas, is the ultimate goal of the course.

Undergraduate level course in microbiology and physiology are suggested to enroll in this course. Also, previous completion of statistics courses and familiarity with the R statistical interface and command line are recommended.