In the Shadow of Medicine: The Glaring Absence of Occurrence Records of Human-Hosted Biodiversity

Microbial diversity is vast, with bacteria playing a crucial role in human health. However, occurrence records (location, date, observer, and host interaction of human-associated bacteria) remain scarce. This lack of information hinders our understanding of human-microbe relationships and disease prevention. In this study, we show that existing solutions such as France’s Système d’Information sur le Patrimoine Naturel framework, can be used to efficiently collect and manage occurrence data on human-associated bacteria. This user-friendly system allows medical personnel to easily share and access data on bacterial pathogens. By adopting similar national infrastructures and treating human-associated bacteria as biodiversity data, we can significantly improve public health management and research, and our understanding of the One Health concept, which emphasizes the interconnectedness of human, animal, and environmental health.