Skin microbiome profle of healthy Cameroonians and Japanese

The commensal microbes of the skin have a signifcant impact on dermal physiology and pathophysiology. Racial and geographical diferences in the skin microbiome are suggested and may play a role in the sensitivity to dermatological disorders, including infectious diseases. However, little is known about the skin microbiome profles of people living in Central Africa, where severe tropical infectious diseases impose a burden on the inhabitants. This study provided the skin profles of healthy Cameroonians in diferent body sites and compared them to healthy Japanese participants. The skin microbiome of Cameroonians was distinguishable from that of Japanese in all skin sites examined in this study. For example, Micrococcus was predominantly found in skin samples of Cameroonians but mostly absent in Japanese skin samples. Instead, the relative abundance of Cutibacterium species was signifcantly higher in healthy Japanese. Principal coordinate analysis of beta diversity showed that the skin microbiome of Cameroonians formed diferent clusters from Japanese, suggesting a substantial diference in the microbiome profles between participants of both countries. In addition, the alpha diversity in skin microbes was higher in Cameroonians than Japanese participants. These
data may ofer insights into the determinant factors responsible for the distinctness of the skin
microbiome of people living in Central Africa and Asia.