Generate more accurate and reproducible microbiome data with the ZymoBIOMICS® Gut Microbiome Standard. This defined microbial community is designed to support benchmarking, quality control and validation across DNA extraction, library preparation, sequencing and bioinformatic analysis. With known species composition and characterised relative abundances, researchers can confidently evaluate workflow performance and identify sources of variability.
Microbiome studies often involve multiple processing steps, each of which can introduce bias. Using a defined reference standard allows researchers to compare results against expected values and verify that every stage of the workflow performs as intended.
The ZymoBIOMICS® Gut Microbiome Standard can be used for:
Unlike undefined biological samples, the ZymoBIOMICS® Gut Microbiome Standard contains a precisely characterised microbial community with known species abundance. This enables direct evaluation of extraction efficiency, library preparation performance and sequencing accuracy.
The standard incorporates representatives from multiple microbial kingdoms, including bacteria and fungi, helping researchers assess workflow performance across diverse organism types.
|
Species |
Theoretical composition (%) |
||||
|
Genomic DNA |
16S only |
16S and 18S |
Genome copy |
Cell number |
|
|
Pseudomonas aeruginosa |
12 |
4.2 |
3.6 |
6.1 |
6.1 |
|
Escherichia coli |
12 |
10.1 |
8.9 |
8.5 |
8.5 |
|
Salmonella enterica |
12 |
10.4 |
9.1 |
8.7 |
8.8 |
|
Lactobacillus fermentum |
12 |
18.4 |
16.1 |
21.6 |
21.9 |
|
Enterococcus faecalis |
12 |
9.9 |
8.7 |
14.6 |
14.6 |
|
Staphylococcus aureus |
12 |
15.5 |
13.6 |
15.2 |
15.3 |
|
Listeria monocytogenes |
12 |
14.1 |
12.4 |
13.9 |
13.9 |
|
Bacillus subtilis |
12 |
17.4 |
15.3 |
10.3 |
10.3 |
|
Saccharomyces cerevisiae |
2 |
NA |
9.3 |
0.57 |
0.29 |
|
Cryptococcus neoformans |
2 |
NA |
3.3 |
0.37 |
0.18 |
Key benefits
Contains 21 microbial strains selected to mimic the complexity of the human gut microbiome and provide a realistic benchmarking tool.
Evaluate and validate extraction methods, sequencing platforms and data analysis pipelines using a well-defined reference sample.
Monitor inter-run consistency, identify workflow variation and improve reproducibility across projects and laboratories.
Includes bacterial, fungal and archaeal organisms for comprehensive workflow assessment.
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Specification |
|---|---|
| Biosafety | BSL-1 |
| Foreign microbial DNA | < 0.01% |
| Reference genomes |
16S&18S rRNA genes |
| Relative abundance deviation | < 15% |
| Storage solution | 2X DNA/RNA Shield® |
| Total cell concentration | ~3.94 × 10⁹ cells/ml |
D6331 – ZymoBIOMICS® Gut Microbiome Standard