News
RSSEnterotypes need to be recalculated
We recently added the enterotype predictions from Keller et al., but just noticed that some studies have the same values for all samples which cannot be correct. We'll fix the problem as soon as possible and upload a new data file!
10 Jun 2026
Missing collection dates
In the past, we tried to infer collection dates even when the authors did not give them. We have changed this to skip the collection date in this case. At some point in the future, we might also remove inexact or inaccurate collection dates.
03 Apr 2026
Welcome to the Metalog News Section
We have added a news section to the Metalog website to keep you informed about significant changes, new features, and important updates to the database. This will be particularly relevant if you use Metalog for large-scale data analyses, as we may from time to time make bigger changes that could affect any workarounds or data formatting you are doing.
News items will appear here and are also available via RSS feed.
01 Apr 2026
New preprint from the lab! "Planetary structure and drivers of diazotroph communities reveal key reservoirs of nitrogen-fixation potential"
Nitrogen fixation is scattered right across the prokaryotic tree — but it's heterotrophs, not cyanobacteria, that dominate the potential. 🧵
Nitrogen fixation is scattered right across the prokaryotic tree — but it's heterotrophs, not cyanobacteria, that dominate the potential. 🧵
bioRxiv Microbiology
Planetary structure and drivers of diazotroph communities reveal key reservoirs of nitrogen-fixation potential https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.07.27.741065v1
We mapped 9,163 shotgun metagenomes — an environmentally balanced subset drawn from a pool of 85,604 from our SPIRE spire.embl.de database — spanning marine, freshwater, terrestrial, anthropogenic and host-associated systems. (2/5)
Freshwater and sediment systems emerge as hotspots of diazotroph diversity and abundance, well beyond the environments that have historically anchored the field. Diazotroph-rich communities track nutrient limitation and carbohydrate-rich metabolic regimes. (3/5)
The resource behind it: NFixPlanet, with 48,151 nitrogenase gene sequences from reference genomes, MAGs and metagenomic contigs. HMMs plus operon-level QC pick out complete Mo-, Fe- and V-nitrogenase systems (nifHDK, anfHDK, vnfHDK) and filter out homologs and pseudogenes.
nfixplanet.embl.de (4/5)
nfixplanet.embl.de (4/5)
Led by Lucas Ustick, who has a longer write-up here: www.linkedin.com/posts/lucas-...
Preprint: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... (5/5)
Preprint: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... (5/5)
Planetary structure and drivers of diazotroph communities reveal key reservoirs of nitrogen-fixation potential | Lucas Ustick
I am very excited to share our preprint on NFixPlanet, a resource and planet wide analysis of diazotrophy.
Releasing this preprint feels bittersweet, as it is my first manuscript since Peer’s passing...
New in @natgenet.nature.com: a moving obituary for Peer.
Francesca Ciccarelli, Jan Korbel & Christian von Mering reflect on his scientific vision, from protein domains and genome evolution to metagenomics, and on his generosity as a mentor and friend to so many.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Francesca Ciccarelli, Jan Korbel & Christian von Mering reflect on his scientific vision, from protein domains and genome evolution to metagenomics, and on his generosity as a mentor and friend to so many.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Peer Bork (1963–2026) - Nature Genetics
Nature Genetics - Peer Bork (1963–2026)
Due to some IT problems, the Bork group homepage and various services such as SPIRE and Metalog are unfortunately going to be unavailable for a couple of days. We're sorry for that and hope that the outage can soon be resolved!
Just published: "Planetary microbiome structure and generalist-driven gene flow across disparate habitats" by @podlesny.bsky.social @chanyeong-kim.bsky.social and @jonas-bio.bsky.social www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...
See the quoted post below for a thread on the preprint!
See the quoted post below for a thread on the preprint!
Planetary microbiome structure and generalist-driven gene flow across disparate habitats
A planetary-scale analysis of over 85,000 metagenomes establishes a framework for
exploring the structure and drivers of global microbial habitats, revealing that generalist
species bridge ecological ...
Chan Yeong Kim
Our new preprint is out!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
In this study, we present the largest systematic analysis of microbiome structure and function, integrating 85K uniformly processed metagenomes from diverse habitats worldwide.
@podlesny.bsky.social @jonas-bio.bsky.social @borklab.bsky.social
It has been two weeks since the unexpected death of Peer Bork, and all of us in his research group are deeply missing him. His scientific vision brought us together as a team, and we are immensely grateful for the time we spent together. 🧵
EMBL
EMBL is deeply saddened by the passing of our Interim Director General Peer Bork, a pioneering scientist who left an indelible imprint on life science research in Europe and beyond.
We extend our deepest condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues.
www.embl.org/news/people-...
Peer did pioneering work in so many research fields, and we aim that our research on the microbiome within the human gut and across environments will continue in his spirit. We have many ongoing projects, papers under review, and some coming out soon. (2/3)
Thank you to everyone who reached out or shared what he meant to them and how he inspired them! We will keep working together, striving to fulfill Peer's scientific legacy. We hope you'll follow along! (3/3)