Shots - Health News Thu February 14, 2013 Scientists Pass The
Hat For Research Funding Originally published on Tue February
26, 2013 12:28 pm When the X-ray was invented, people clamored
to get one. Not for any medical reason, but just to see what was
typically hidden inside their bodies. Something like that seems
to be happening with DNA sequencing technology. First it was
companies offering to sequence people's genomes. Now it's
learning all about your microbiome, the collection of
microorganisms living on and in your body. Both are basic
science projects aimed at understanding how microbiomes
influence health. And in return for funding from individuals,
both will provide donors with an analysis of the bacteria in
their very own digestive tract. Using a website called Indiegogo
to crowd fund, the uBiome and American Gut projects have
together raised more than $600,000. Crowd funding, in case
you're unfamiliar it, is accomplished by posting a project on a
website like Kickstarter, setting a fundraising targe