Dual roles of skin microbiota

Microbiology Like the gut, the skin is colonized by microbes that can be protective to help maintain homeostasis or be pathogenic. In a Perspective, Stacy and Belkaid discuss the dual roles of Staphylococcus epidermidis on skin. This microbe exemplifies how skin microbiota can promote immune and antimicrobial responses against pathogens but, in certain contexts, aggravate pathologies such as eczema and possibly skin cancer. Skin is often termed the largest human organ, so it is important to understand how skin microbiota contribute to health. Science , this issue p. [227][1] [1]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.aat4326