From 2782e7275cf4a169434ea4d8ba945aff055c07f6 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Chengchen Li Cherry <60983920+CherryChengchenLi@users.noreply.github.com> Date: Mon, 15 Sep 2025 22:07:55 +0800 Subject: [PATCH 1/3] Update 2025-04-26-skin-dermotype.markdown minor changes in blog text --- _posts/2025-04-26-skin-dermotype.markdown | 19 ++++++++----------- 1 file changed, 8 insertions(+), 11 deletions(-) diff --git a/_posts/2025-04-26-skin-dermotype.markdown b/_posts/2025-04-26-skin-dermotype.markdown index 8578414..655c275 100644 --- a/_posts/2025-04-26-skin-dermotype.markdown +++ b/_posts/2025-04-26-skin-dermotype.markdown @@ -10,28 +10,25 @@ code: https://github.com/CSB5/ASMP_Dermotype author: [cherry, aarthi, indrik, nazri, jsg, yueyuan, qiyan, minghao, amanda, niranjan] featured: false --- -Super thrilled to share our labor of love from the Asian Skin Microbiome Program! Collected >3,500 skin samples, built metagenomic libraries w/ >70 billion reads and >10TB of data to study population heterogeneity in skin microbiome (200 adults, 18 sites). - -Many exciting results to follow-up on: - -1. The skin microbiome has unique “types” in every site - we call them dermotypes. The underarm has as many as 5 distinct ones defined by diverse microbes. We built ML classifiers to predict them w/ near-perfect accuracy with 5 species! +Which skin microbiome type do you have 🤔 Super thrilled to share our exciting work from the Asian Skin Microbiome Program! We collected >3,500 skin samples, built metagenomic libraries w/ >70 billion reads and >10TB of data to study population heterogeneity in skin microbiome (200 adults, 18 sites). +Surveying this unpredecented scale of skin microbiome samples, we observed that the skin microbiome is organized into distinct "dermotypes" unique to each skin site! In the underarm alone, we identified 5 distinct dermotypes. Using machine learning, we can predict these dermotypes with just five key microbial species. ![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gph3psHa4AAVgvm?format=jpg&name=large) - -2. Dermotypes are highly coordinated across sites. For some sites, we can predict the dermotype just by knowing dermotype of another site. Left and right sides of the body are also highly correlated, suggesting that individual intrinsic factors strongly shape the skin microbiome. +What’s even more fascinating? Dermotypes are highly coordinated across different parts of the body. Left and right sides mirror each other closely — pointing to systematic coordinations. ![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gph5Q0Oa0AAyjZU?format=jpg&name=large) -3. Microbes behave very differently across dermotypes in terms of who they co-occur with! We can confirm this with culture-based experiments that show that oxygen gradients and nutrient availability likely shape why we see distinct dermotypes in various individuals. + +You might ask - why do these skin microbiome dermotypes emerge and does it matter to our skin health? 🤔 We observed that microbes behave differently depending on dermotype, forming unique co-occurrence networks. Culture-based experiments further suggest oxygen gradients and nutrient availability drive these patterns. ![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gph57YJaYAAZLmz?format=jpg&name=large) -4. Dermotypes exhibit distinct associations w/ host, where ethnicity and gender play a role in some cases, while others are linked to skincare behaviors. Skin sensitivity, itch and eczema may be affected by dermotype function, highlighting utility for patient stratification & Tx +Dermotypes aren’t just scientific curiosities — they matter for health. They’re linked to host factors like ethnicity, gender, and skincare habits. Some dermotypes even correlate with skin sensitivity, itch, and eczema risk, offering new opportunities for patient stratification and treatment innovation. ![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gph68riboAAj9Nd?format=jpg&name=medium) -5. Exciting days ahead as we try to decipher the contributions of diverse factors that shape skin microbiome dermotypes, and in turn their influence on skin health! +Exciting times ahead as we continue unraveling how diverse factors sculpt the skin microbiome, and how dermotypes influence skin health! - ![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gph91ppbAAAfpOe?format=jpg&name=4096x4096) \ No newline at end of file + ![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gph91ppbAAAfpOe?format=jpg&name=4096x4096) From 7b53df90e2220faf881cc5eeb404a4582df22730 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Chengchen Li Cherry <60983920+CherryChengchenLi@users.noreply.github.com> Date: Mon, 15 Sep 2025 22:19:39 +0800 Subject: [PATCH 2/3] Update 1990-01-02-skin-microbiome.markdown Added links for citations --- _posts/1990-01-02-skin-microbiome.markdown | 4 ++-- 1 file changed, 2 insertions(+), 2 deletions(-) diff --git a/_posts/1990-01-02-skin-microbiome.markdown b/_posts/1990-01-02-skin-microbiome.markdown index dfdfb52..c89c6fa 100644 --- a/_posts/1990-01-02-skin-microbiome.markdown +++ b/_posts/1990-01-02-skin-microbiome.markdown @@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ image: 'https://joyfulmicrobe.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Untitled_Artwork-sc featured: true --- -The skin is an important interface between the human body and the environment and harbors diverse microbial communities across different sites. We have pioneered new approaches to study the function of skin microbes in vivo [cite], identified distinct dermotypes across individuals through population-scale metagenomics with the Asian Skin Microbiome program [cite, link to ASMP], and identified key microbes that play a role in skin conditions such as eczema and malodor [cite]. +The skin is an important interface between the human body and the environment and harbors diverse microbial communities across different sites. We have pioneered new approaches to study the function of [skin microbes in vivo](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41587-025-02797-4), identified [distinct dermotypes](https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.04.24.650393v2) across individuals through population-scale metagenomics with the [Asian Skin Microbiome program](https://www.a-star.edu.sg/sris/research/asian-skin-microbiome), and identified key microbes that play a role in [skin conditions](https://www.nature.com/articles/nmicrobiol2016106) such as [eczema](https://www.jacionline.org/article/S0091-6749(20)31399-3/fulltext) and [malodor](https://microbiomejournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40168-018-0588-z). -{% assign post_count = site.posts | where: 'author', page.username %} \ No newline at end of file +{% assign post_count = site.posts | where: 'author', page.username %} From 66bdd854034a22c9cd9bc593f83f40ef8fe42ed8 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Chengchen Li Cherry <60983920+CherryChengchenLi@users.noreply.github.com> Date: Sun, 15 Feb 2026 13:50:56 +0800 Subject: [PATCH 3/3] Revise skin microbiome dermotype post for --- _posts/2025-04-26-skin-dermotype.markdown | 17 +++++++++-------- 1 file changed, 9 insertions(+), 8 deletions(-) diff --git a/_posts/2025-04-26-skin-dermotype.markdown b/_posts/2025-04-26-skin-dermotype.markdown index 7f91723..dd07d7f 100644 --- a/_posts/2025-04-26-skin-dermotype.markdown +++ b/_posts/2025-04-26-skin-dermotype.markdown @@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ layout: post title: Asian skin microbiome dermotypes description: We present the largest- to-date skin microbiome dataset and establish dermotypes as a key organizing principle of skin microbial ecology. -image: 'https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gph91ppbAAAfpOe?format=jpg&name=4096x4096' +image: 'https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gph91ppbAAAfpOe?format=jpg&name=large' tags: [Skin Microbiome] date: 2025-04-26 preprint: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.04.24.650393v1 @@ -10,25 +10,26 @@ code: https://github.com/CSB5/ASMP_Dermotype author: [cherry-li-chengchen, aarthi-ravikrishnan, indrik-wijaya, ahmad-nazri-mohamed-naim, jean-sebastien-gounot, on-yue-yuan, qi-yan-ang, minghao-chia, amanda-ng, niranjan-nagarajan] featured: false --- -Which skin microbiome type do you have 🤔 Super thrilled to share our exciting work from the Asian Skin Microbiome Program! We collected >3,500 skin samples, built metagenomic libraries w/ >70 billion reads and >10TB of data to study population heterogeneity in skin microbiome (200 adults, 18 sites). +Ever wondered if you skin microbiome falls into one of a few distinct patterns 🤔, like a MBTI personality type but for microbial communities living on your skin? Most published skin microbiome studies zoom in on small groups or specific skin diseases, capturing individual variations but missing the bigger picture: how does the skin microbiome actually vary across the healthy population? -Surveying this unpredecented scale of skin microbiome samples, we observed that the skin microbiome is organized into distinct "dermotypes" unique to each skin site! In the underarm alone, we identified 5 distinct dermotypes. Using machine learning, we can predict these dermotypes with just five key microbial species. +To uncover this population-level heterogeneity, we launched the [**Asian Skin Microbiome Program**](/asmp), collecting >3,500 skin samples from 200 adults across 18 body sites. We built metagenomic libraries with >70 billion reads and >10TB of data—the largest skin microbiome dataset to date. + +Surveying this unprecedented scale, we discovered that skin microbiomes organize into distinct "dermotypes" unique to each body site! The underarm alone harbors 5 distinct dermotypes. Using machine learning, we can predict a person’s underarm dermotype using just 5 key microbial species. ![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gph3psHa4AAVgvm?format=jpg&name=large) -What’s even more fascinating? Dermotypes are highly coordinated across different parts of the body. Left and right sides mirror each other closely — pointing to systematic coordinations. +Even more striking? Dermotypes are highly coordinated across the body. Left and right sides mirror each other closely, pointing to systematic, whole-body patterns rather than random variation. ![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gph5Q0Oa0AAyjZU?format=jpg&name=large) - -You might ask - why do these skin microbiome dermotypes emerge and does it matter to our skin health? 🤔 We observed that microbes behave differently depending on dermotype, forming unique co-occurrence networks. Culture-based experiments further suggest oxygen gradients and nutrient availability drive these patterns. +Why do these dermotypes emerge, and do they matter for skin health? We observed that microbes behave differently depending on dermotype, forming unique co-occurrence networks. Culture-based experiments also suggest oxygen gradients and nutrient availability are likely drivers. ![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gph57YJaYAAZLmz?format=jpg&name=large) -Dermotypes aren’t just scientific curiosities — they matter for health. They’re linked to host factors like ethnicity, gender, and skincare habits. Some dermotypes even correlate with skin sensitivity, itch, and eczema risk, offering new opportunities for patient stratification and treatment innovation. +But dermotypes aren’t just scientific curiosities, they have clinical relevance. They're linked to host factors like ethnicity, gender, and skincare habits. And certain dermotypes, for example, Staphylococcus-enriched elbow crease dermotype, even correlate with skin sensitivity, itch, and eczema risk, offering new opportunities for patient stratification. ![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gph68riboAAj9Nd?format=jpg&name=medium) -Exciting times ahead as we continue unraveling how diverse factors sculpt the skin microbiome, and how dermotypes influence skin health! +What's next? We’re continuing to explore how diverse environmental, human genetics, and lifestyle factors sculpt dermotypes, and whether dermotype could predict skin disease before symptoms appear. Imagine if we could swab your skin, and forecast your eczema risk weeks in advance! ![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gph91ppbAAAfpOe?format=jpg&name=4096x4096)