Unearthing soil biodiversity through collaborative genomic research and education

Lindsay Zirkle; Senem Mavruk Eskipehlivan; Jefferson Da Silva; Tristen Alberts; Claude F. Albritton; Rosa Alcazar; Zainab Aljabri; Maria Alvarez; Anish Aradhey; Mentewab Ayalew; Nareh Azizian; Yasmeen Balayah; Destiny D. Ball; Efren Barragan; Corey Beshoar; Lyle Best; Emily Biggane; Joseph Biggane; Jesse Blick; Myron Blosser; Alex Kenneth Brown; Michael C. Campbell; Zoe Canizares; Faith N. Chanhuhwa; Yu Chen; Daniel R. Chin; Kamal Chowdhury; Tyler Collins; Blair Compton; Nia R. Davis; Natalie DeCaro; Frida Delgadillo; Youping Deng; Joceph Duncan; Arinzechukwu C. Egwu; Grace D. Ekalle; Noha Elnawam; Ray Enke; Naomi Ewhe; Marco A. Ferrel; Janna Fierst; Grace Freymiller; Karla Fuller; Lena Fulton-Wright; Valeriya Gaysinskaya; Torrence Gill; Ellie Gillespie; Perla Gonzalez Moreno; Sara Goodwin; Natajha Graham; Madeline E. Graham; Joseph L. Graves; Emily Grob; Rachael Gutierrez; Aisha Hager; Shazia Tabassum Hakim; Aaliyah Harris; Ava M. Hoffman; Tobias Hoffmann; Alani M. Horton; Allison Hughes; Elizabeth M. Humphries; Josh Samuel Ikechi-Konkwo; Aadil Ishtiaq; Ryan Jackson; Joshua Ronnie James; Kaitlan James; Sydney A. Jamison; Armando Jimenez; Rachel Johnson; Abigail Kauffman; Harkiran Kaur; Kritika Kc; Analyse Keeton; Olivia E. Kelly; Jennifer Kerr; Nataliya Kucher; Donna Lee Kuehu; Wendy A. Larson; Joslynn Lee; Andrew Lee; Jeffrey T. Leek; Danilo Lemaic; Lincoln E. Liburd; Alan Fernando Lopez; Mohammadamin Mahmanzar; Karwitha Mamae; Raffi Manjikian; Michael Marone; Katerin Marquez; Amara Martinson; Ashley Medrano; Melanie Melendrez-Vallard; Robert Meller; Loyda B. Méndez; Miguel P. Mendez Gonzalez; Nicolli Mesquita; Concepcion Martinez Miller; Isam Mohd-Ibrahim; Peter Mortensen; Stephen Mosher; Alketa Muja; Nadia Nasrin; Masaki Nasu; Matthew H. Nguyen; Ba Thong Nguyen; Michele Nishiguchi; Lance M. O’Connor; Disomi Okie; Tolulope Olowookorun; Alex Ostrovsky; Keyan Ozuna; Asmita Pandey; Shiv B. Patel; Gauri Paul; Shrikant Pawar; Andrea Pearson; Deborah Petrik; Jordan Platero; Carl Pontino; Arjun P. Pratap; Siddharth Pratap; Yujia Qin; Sudhir Kumar Rai; Nisttha Ray; Ethan Repesh; Kristen Rhinehardt; Brennan Roche; Ariana Rodriguez; Shriya Roy; Sourav Roy; Alexa Sawa; Michael C. Schatz; Shurjo K. Sen; Randon Serikawa; Tyler Smith; Loraye Smith; James Sniezek; Ryley D. Stewart; Edu B. Suarez-Martinez; Joelle Taganna; Frederick J. Tan; Nikolaos Tsotakos; Nwanneka Udolisa; Katherine Ulbricht; Tanner Veo; Jennifer Vessio; Lia Walker; Oscar Wang; Qingguo Wang; Robert Wappel; Kalynn Wesby; Malachi Whitford; Nicole Wild; Xianfa Xie; Hua Yang; Sayumi York

doi:10.1038/s41588-025-02442-5

Unearthing soil biodiversity through collaborative genomic research and education

Lindsay Zirkle
, Senem Mavruk Eskipehlivan
, Jefferson Da Silva
, Tristen Alberts
, Claude F. Albritton
, Rosa Alcazar
, Zainab Aljabri
, Maria Alvarez
, Anish Aradhey
, Mentewab Ayalew
, Nareh Azizian
, Yasmeen Balayah
, Destiny D. Ball
, Efren Barragan
, Corey Beshoar
, Lyle Best
, Emily Biggane
, Joseph Biggane
, Jesse Blick
, Myron Blosser

Alex Kenneth Brown, Michael C. Campbell, Zoe Canizares, Faith N. Chanhuhwa, Yu Chen, Daniel R. Chin, Kamal Chowdhury, Tyler Collins, Blair Compton, Nia R. Davis, Natalie DeCaro, Frida Delgadillo, Youping Deng, Joceph Duncan, Arinzechukwu C. Egwu, Grace D. Ekalle, Noha Elnawam, Ray Enke, Naomi Ewhe, Marco A. Ferrel, Janna Fierst, Grace Freymiller, Karla Fuller, Lena Fulton-Wright, Valeriya Gaysinskaya, Torrence Gill, Ellie Gillespie, Perla Gonzalez Moreno, Sara Goodwin, Natajha Graham, Madeline E. Graham, Joseph L. Graves, Emily Grob, Rachael Gutierrez, Aisha Hager, Shazia Tabassum Hakim, Aaliyah Harris, Ava M. Hoffman, Tobias Hoffmann, Alani M. Horton, Allison Hughes, Elizabeth M. Humphries, Josh Samuel Ikechi-Konkwo, Aadil Ishtiaq, Ryan Jackson, Joshua Ronnie James, Kaitlan James, Sydney A. Jamison, Armando Jimenez, Rachel Johnson, Abigail Kauffman, Harkiran Kaur, Kritika Kc, Analyse Keeton, Olivia E. Kelly, Jennifer Kerr, Nataliya Kucher, Donna Lee Kuehu, Wendy A. Larson, Joslynn Lee, Andrew Lee, Jeffrey T. Leek, Danilo Lemaic, Lincoln E. Liburd, Alan Fernando Lopez, Mohammadamin Mahmanzar, Karwitha Mamae, Raffi Manjikian, Michael Marone, Katerin Marquez, Amara Martinson, Ashley Medrano, Melanie Melendrez-Vallard, Robert Meller, Loyda B. Méndez, Miguel P. Mendez Gonzalez, Nicolli Mesquita, Concepcion Martinez Miller, Isam Mohd-Ibrahim, Peter Mortensen, Stephen Mosher, Alketa Muja, Nadia Nasrin, Masaki Nasu, Matthew H. Nguyen, Ba Thong Nguyen, Michele Nishiguchi, Lance M. O’Connor, Disomi Okie, Tolulope Olowookorun, Alex Ostrovsky, Keyan Ozuna, Asmita Pandey, Shiv B. Patel, Gauri Paul, Shrikant Pawar, Andrea Pearson, Deborah Petrik, Jordan Platero, Carl Pontino, Arjun P. Pratap, Siddharth Pratap, Yujia Qin, Sudhir Kumar Rai, Nisttha Ray, Ethan Repesh, Kristen Rhinehardt, Brennan Roche, Ariana Rodriguez, Shriya Roy, Sourav Roy, Alexa Sawa, Michael C. Schatz, Shurjo K. Sen, Randon Serikawa, Tyler Smith, Loraye Smith, James Sniezek, Ryley D. Stewart, Edu B. Suarez-Martinez, Joelle Taganna, Frederick J. Tan, Nikolaos Tsotakos, Nwanneka Udolisa, Katherine Ulbricht, Tanner Veo, Jennifer Vessio, Lia Walker, Oscar Wang, Qingguo Wang, Robert Wappel, Kalynn Wesby, Malachi Whitford, Nicole Wild, Xianfa Xie, Hua Yang, Sayumi York

Biology

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

Abstract

The BioDIGS project is a nationwide initiative involving students, researchers and educators across more than 40 research and teaching institutions. Participants lead sample collection, computational analysis and results interpretation to understand the relationships between the soil microbiome, environment and health.

Original language	English
Journal	Nature Genetics
Volume	58
Issue number	Issue 1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41588-025-02442-5
State	Published - 2026

Access to Document

10.1038/s41588-025-02442-5

Cite this

Zirkle, L., Mavruk Eskipehlivan, S., Da Silva, J., Alberts, T., Albritton, C. F., Alcazar, R., Aljabri, Z., Alvarez, M., Aradhey, A., Ayalew, M., Azizian, N., Balayah, Y., Ball, D. D., Barragan, E., Beshoar, C., Best, L., Biggane, E., Biggane, J., Blick, J., ... York, S. (2026). Unearthing soil biodiversity through collaborative genomic research and education. Nature Genetics, 58(Issue 1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41588-025-02442-5

@article{03e1187bd7d647caa5f86105cb036ec1,

title = "Unearthing soil biodiversity through collaborative genomic research and education",

abstract = "The BioDIGS project is a nationwide initiative involving students, researchers and educators across more than 40 research and teaching institutions. Participants lead sample collection, computational analysis and results interpretation to understand the relationships between the soil microbiome, environment and health.",

author = "Lindsay Zirkle and \{Mavruk Eskipehlivan\}, Senem and \{Da Silva\}, Jefferson and Tristen Alberts and Albritton, \{Claude F.\} and Rosa Alcazar and Zainab Aljabri and Maria Alvarez and Anish Aradhey and Mentewab Ayalew and Nareh Azizian and Yasmeen Balayah and Ball, \{Destiny D.\} and Efren Barragan and Corey Beshoar and Lyle Best and Emily Biggane and Joseph Biggane and Jesse Blick and Myron Blosser and Brown, \{Alex Kenneth\} and Campbell, \{Michael C.\} and Zoe Canizares and Chanhuhwa, \{Faith N.\} and Yu Chen and Chin, \{Daniel R.\} and Kamal Chowdhury and Tyler Collins and Blair Compton and Davis, \{Nia R.\} and Natalie DeCaro and Frida Delgadillo and Youping Deng and Joceph Duncan and Egwu, \{Arinzechukwu C.\} and Ekalle, \{Grace D.\} and Noha Elnawam and Ray Enke and Naomi Ewhe and Ferrel, \{Marco A.\} and Janna Fierst and Grace Freymiller and Karla Fuller and Lena Fulton-Wright and Valeriya Gaysinskaya and Torrence Gill and Ellie Gillespie and \{Gonzalez Moreno\}, Perla and Sara Goodwin and Natajha Graham and Graham, \{Madeline E.\} and Graves, \{Joseph L.\} and Emily Grob and Rachael Gutierrez and Aisha Hager and Hakim, \{Shazia Tabassum\} and Aaliyah Harris and Hoffman, \{Ava M.\} and Tobias Hoffmann and Horton, \{Alani M.\} and Allison Hughes and Humphries, \{Elizabeth M.\} and Ikechi-Konkwo, \{Josh Samuel\} and Aadil Ishtiaq and Ryan Jackson and James, \{Joshua Ronnie\} and Kaitlan James and Jamison, \{Sydney A.\} and Armando Jimenez and Rachel Johnson and Abigail Kauffman and Harkiran Kaur and Kritika Kc and Analyse Keeton and Kelly, \{Olivia E.\} and Jennifer Kerr and Nataliya Kucher and Kuehu, \{Donna Lee\} and Larson, \{Wendy A.\} and Joslynn Lee and Andrew Lee and Leek, \{Jeffrey T.\} and Danilo Lemaic and Liburd, \{Lincoln E.\} and Lopez, \{Alan Fernando\} and Mohammadamin Mahmanzar and Karwitha Mamae and Raffi Manjikian and Michael Marone and Katerin Marquez and Amara Martinson and Ashley Medrano and Melanie Melendrez-Vallard and Robert Meller and M{\'e}ndez, \{Loyda B.\} and \{Mendez Gonzalez\}, \{Miguel P.\} and Nicolli Mesquita and Miller, \{Concepcion Martinez\} and Isam Mohd-Ibrahim and Peter Mortensen and Stephen Mosher and Alketa Muja and Nadia Nasrin and Masaki Nasu and Nguyen, \{Matthew H.\} and Nguyen, \{Ba Thong\} and Michele Nishiguchi and O{\textquoteright}Connor, \{Lance M.\} and Disomi Okie and Tolulope Olowookorun and Alex Ostrovsky and Keyan Ozuna and Asmita Pandey and Patel, \{Shiv B.\} and Gauri Paul and Shrikant Pawar and Andrea Pearson and Deborah Petrik and Jordan Platero and Carl Pontino and Pratap, \{Arjun P.\} and Siddharth Pratap and Yujia Qin and Rai, \{Sudhir Kumar\} and Nisttha Ray and Ethan Repesh and Kristen Rhinehardt and Brennan Roche and Ariana Rodriguez and Shriya Roy and Sourav Roy and Alexa Sawa and Schatz, \{Michael C.\} and Sen, \{Shurjo K.\} and Randon Serikawa and Tyler Smith and Loraye Smith and James Sniezek and Stewart, \{Ryley D.\} and Suarez-Martinez, \{Edu B.\} and Joelle Taganna and Tan, \{Frederick J.\} and Nikolaos Tsotakos and Nwanneka Udolisa and Katherine Ulbricht and Tanner Veo and Jennifer Vessio and Lia Walker and Oscar Wang and Qingguo Wang and Robert Wappel and Kalynn Wesby and Malachi Whitford and Nicole Wild and Xianfa Xie and Hua Yang and Sayumi York",

year = "2026",

doi = "10.1038/s41588-025-02442-5",

language = "English",

volume = "58",

journal = "Nature Genetics",

number = "Issue 1",

}

Zirkle, L, Mavruk Eskipehlivan, S, Da Silva, J, Alberts, T, Albritton, CF, Alcazar, R, Aljabri, Z, Alvarez, M, Aradhey, A, Ayalew, M, Azizian, N, Balayah, Y, Ball, DD, Barragan, E, Beshoar, C, Best, L, Biggane, E, Biggane, J, Blick, J, Blosser, M, Brown, AK, Campbell, MC, Canizares, Z, Chanhuhwa, FN, Chen, Y, Chin, DR, Chowdhury, K, Collins, T, Compton, B, Davis, NR, DeCaro, N, Delgadillo, F, Deng, Y, Duncan, J, Egwu, AC, Ekalle, GD, Elnawam, N, Enke, R, Ewhe, N, Ferrel, MA, Fierst, J, Freymiller, G, Fuller, K, Fulton-Wright, L, Gaysinskaya, V, Gill, T, Gillespie, E, Gonzalez Moreno, P, Goodwin, S, Graham, N, Graham, ME, Graves, JL, Grob, E, Gutierrez, R, Hager, A, Hakim, ST, Harris, A, Hoffman, AM, Hoffmann, T, Horton, AM, Hughes, A, Humphries, EM, Ikechi-Konkwo, JS, Ishtiaq, A, Jackson, R, James, JR, James, K, Jamison, SA, Jimenez, A, Johnson, R, Kauffman, A, Kaur, H, Kc, K, Keeton, A, Kelly, OE, Kerr, J, Kucher, N, Kuehu, DL, Larson, WA, Lee, J, Lee, A, Leek, JT, Lemaic, D, Liburd, LE, Lopez, AF, Mahmanzar, M, Mamae, K, Manjikian, R, Marone, M, Marquez, K, Martinson, A, Medrano, A, Melendrez-Vallard, M, Meller, R, Méndez, LB, Mendez Gonzalez, MP, Mesquita, N, Miller, CM, Mohd-Ibrahim, I, Mortensen, P, Mosher, S, Muja, A, Nasrin, N, Nasu, M, Nguyen, MH, Nguyen, BT, Nishiguchi, M, O’Connor, LM, Okie, D, Olowookorun, T, Ostrovsky, A, Ozuna, K, Pandey, A, Patel, SB, Paul, G, Pawar, S, Pearson, A, Petrik, D, Platero, J, Pontino, C, Pratap, AP, Pratap, S, Qin, Y, Rai, SK, Ray, N, Repesh, E, Rhinehardt, K, Roche, B, Rodriguez, A, Roy, S, Roy, S, Sawa, A, Schatz, MC, Sen, SK, Serikawa, R, Smith, T, Smith, L, Sniezek, J, Stewart, RD, Suarez-Martinez, EB, Taganna, J, Tan, FJ, Tsotakos, N, Udolisa, N, Ulbricht, K, Veo, T, Vessio, J, Walker, L, Wang, O, Wang, Q, Wappel, R, Wesby, K, Whitford, M, Wild, N, Xie, X, Yang, H & York, S 2026, 'Unearthing soil biodiversity through collaborative genomic research and education', Nature Genetics, vol. 58, no. Issue 1. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41588-025-02442-5

TY - JOUR

T1 - Unearthing soil biodiversity through collaborative genomic research and education

AU - Zirkle, Lindsay

AU - Mavruk Eskipehlivan, Senem

AU - Da Silva, Jefferson

AU - Alberts, Tristen

AU - Albritton, Claude F.

AU - Alcazar, Rosa

AU - Aljabri, Zainab

AU - Alvarez, Maria

AU - Aradhey, Anish

AU - Ayalew, Mentewab

AU - Azizian, Nareh

AU - Balayah, Yasmeen

AU - Ball, Destiny D.

AU - Barragan, Efren

AU - Beshoar, Corey

AU - Best, Lyle

AU - Biggane, Emily

AU - Biggane, Joseph

AU - Blick, Jesse

AU - Blosser, Myron

AU - Brown, Alex Kenneth

AU - Campbell, Michael C.

AU - Canizares, Zoe

AU - Chanhuhwa, Faith N.

AU - Chen, Yu

AU - Chin, Daniel R.

AU - Chowdhury, Kamal

AU - Collins, Tyler

AU - Compton, Blair

AU - Davis, Nia R.

AU - DeCaro, Natalie

AU - Delgadillo, Frida

AU - Deng, Youping

AU - Duncan, Joceph

AU - Egwu, Arinzechukwu C.

AU - Ekalle, Grace D.

AU - Elnawam, Noha

AU - Enke, Ray

AU - Ewhe, Naomi

AU - Ferrel, Marco A.

AU - Fierst, Janna

AU - Freymiller, Grace

AU - Fuller, Karla

AU - Fulton-Wright, Lena

AU - Gaysinskaya, Valeriya

AU - Gill, Torrence

AU - Gillespie, Ellie

AU - Gonzalez Moreno, Perla

AU - Goodwin, Sara

AU - Graham, Natajha

AU - Graham, Madeline E.

AU - Graves, Joseph L.

AU - Grob, Emily

AU - Gutierrez, Rachael

AU - Hager, Aisha

AU - Hakim, Shazia Tabassum

AU - Harris, Aaliyah

AU - Hoffman, Ava M.

AU - Hoffmann, Tobias

AU - Horton, Alani M.

AU - Hughes, Allison

AU - Humphries, Elizabeth M.

AU - Ikechi-Konkwo, Josh Samuel

AU - Ishtiaq, Aadil

AU - Jackson, Ryan

AU - James, Joshua Ronnie

AU - James, Kaitlan

AU - Jamison, Sydney A.

AU - Jimenez, Armando

AU - Johnson, Rachel

AU - Kauffman, Abigail

AU - Kaur, Harkiran

AU - Kc, Kritika

AU - Keeton, Analyse

AU - Kelly, Olivia E.

AU - Kerr, Jennifer

AU - Kucher, Nataliya

AU - Kuehu, Donna Lee

AU - Larson, Wendy A.

AU - Lee, Joslynn

AU - Lee, Andrew

AU - Leek, Jeffrey T.

AU - Lemaic, Danilo

AU - Liburd, Lincoln E.

AU - Lopez, Alan Fernando

AU - Mahmanzar, Mohammadamin

AU - Mamae, Karwitha

AU - Manjikian, Raffi

AU - Marone, Michael

AU - Marquez, Katerin

AU - Martinson, Amara

AU - Medrano, Ashley

AU - Melendrez-Vallard, Melanie

AU - Meller, Robert

AU - Méndez, Loyda B.

AU - Mendez Gonzalez, Miguel P.

AU - Mesquita, Nicolli

AU - Miller, Concepcion Martinez

AU - Mohd-Ibrahim, Isam

AU - Mortensen, Peter

AU - Mosher, Stephen

AU - Muja, Alketa

AU - Nasrin, Nadia

AU - Nasu, Masaki

AU - Nguyen, Matthew H.

AU - Nguyen, Ba Thong

AU - Nishiguchi, Michele

AU - O’Connor, Lance M.

AU - Okie, Disomi

AU - Olowookorun, Tolulope

AU - Ostrovsky, Alex

AU - Ozuna, Keyan

AU - Pandey, Asmita

AU - Patel, Shiv B.

AU - Paul, Gauri

AU - Pawar, Shrikant

AU - Pearson, Andrea

AU - Petrik, Deborah

AU - Platero, Jordan

AU - Pontino, Carl

AU - Pratap, Arjun P.

AU - Pratap, Siddharth

AU - Qin, Yujia

AU - Rai, Sudhir Kumar

AU - Ray, Nisttha

AU - Repesh, Ethan

AU - Rhinehardt, Kristen

AU - Roche, Brennan

AU - Rodriguez, Ariana

AU - Roy, Shriya

AU - Roy, Sourav

AU - Sawa, Alexa

AU - Schatz, Michael C.

AU - Sen, Shurjo K.

AU - Serikawa, Randon

AU - Smith, Tyler

AU - Smith, Loraye

AU - Sniezek, James

AU - Stewart, Ryley D.

AU - Suarez-Martinez, Edu B.

AU - Taganna, Joelle

AU - Tan, Frederick J.

AU - Tsotakos, Nikolaos

AU - Udolisa, Nwanneka

AU - Ulbricht, Katherine

AU - Veo, Tanner

AU - Vessio, Jennifer

AU - Walker, Lia

AU - Wang, Oscar

AU - Wang, Qingguo

AU - Wappel, Robert

AU - Wesby, Kalynn

AU - Whitford, Malachi

AU - Wild, Nicole

AU - Xie, Xianfa

AU - Yang, Hua

AU - York, Sayumi

PY - 2026

Y1 - 2026

N2 - The BioDIGS project is a nationwide initiative involving students, researchers and educators across more than 40 research and teaching institutions. Participants lead sample collection, computational analysis and results interpretation to understand the relationships between the soil microbiome, environment and health.

AB - The BioDIGS project is a nationwide initiative involving students, researchers and educators across more than 40 research and teaching institutions. Participants lead sample collection, computational analysis and results interpretation to understand the relationships between the soil microbiome, environment and health.

UR - https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41588-025-02442-5

U2 - 10.1038/s41588-025-02442-5

DO - 10.1038/s41588-025-02442-5

M3 - Article

VL - 58

JO - Nature Genetics

JF - Nature Genetics

IS - Issue 1

ER -

Unearthing soil biodiversity through collaborative genomic research and education

Abstract

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this