Plate · Bacillota

genus · NCBI 906

Megasphaera

Formerly Anaeroglobus.

Species9

Products0 across its species

Samples11,870

Also known as AnaeroglobusColibacter

The genus

Species in this genus

Include unnamed strains (3)

Species	Healthy guts ↓ 0–100%	Products
Megasphaera massiliensis	6.2%	0
Megasphaera micronuciformis	3.6%	0
Megasphaera elsdenii	2.7%	0
Megasphaera hominis	<1%	0
Megasphaera stantonii	<1%	0
Megasphaera cerevisiae	<1%	0
Megasphaera hutchinsoni	<1%	0
Megasphaera vaginalis (ex Srinivasan et al. 2021)	<1%	0
Megasphaera lornae	<1%	0
Across the genus	19%	0

* Counted in the same healthy people as the species (whole-genome samples). All bars use the same 0–100% scale. A product with two Megasphaera species counts once in the genus total.

What they are

Its species' DNA

A C G T

Genome sizes · 8 Megasphaera species

Shortest we have Mycoplasmoides genitalium 0.6M

⋮ 54 shorter than any Megasphaera

Megasphaera hutchinsoni 1.6M

Megasphaera lornae 1.6M

Megasphaera micronuciformis 1.8M

Megasphaera massiliensis 2.5M

Megasphaera elsdenii 2.5M

Megasphaera stantonii 2.7M

Megasphaera hominis 2.7M

Megasphaera cerevisiae 3.2M

⋮ 1,170 longer than any Megasphaera

Longest we have Bradyrhizobium altum 9.8M

Megasphaera genomes run from 1.6M to 3.2M: small for gut microbes.

One reference genome per species; strains vary.

Their ID genes, lined up: shared stretches form solid stripes

16S gene, V4 region, from one reference sequence per species, aligned so the same positions line up. A blank is a gap: letters other species have and this one lacks. Switch to “Only where they differ” to fade the letters they share.

From its species' genomes and lab tests

What its species can do

A species counts when most of its strains can. Not measured in anyone's gut. 2 of its 9 species aren't in either source yet.

Can make butyrate 2 of 4 species M. micronuciformis, M. elsdenii
Can make propionate 1 of 4 species M. elsdenii
Can make lactic acid 1 of 4 species M. elsdenii
Can ferment fiber 1 of 7 species M. micronuciformis
Can eat inulin 0 of 4 species None of its species
Can eat resistant starch 0 of 4 species None of its species
Can eat pectin 0 of 4 species None of its species
Can use lactose 0 of 5 species None of its species
Can feed on gut mucus 0 of 4 species None of its species
Can change bile acids 0 of 4 species None of its species
Can make B vitamins 0 of 4 species None of its species
Can make hydrogen sulfide 0 of 4 species None of its species
Can make methane 0 of 4 species None of its species

What’s typical · a description, not a comparison

In healthy guts

Everyone · 12,213 people · 129 studies

How common

Found in 19% of healthy people.

How big a slice of the gut

largest Bacteroides 9.8%
2nd largest Phocaeicola 9.1%
3rd largest Segatella 6.4%
4th largest Bifidobacterium 6.2%
5th largest Faecalibacterium 5.4%
6th largest Alistipes 5.2%
7th largest Blautia 3.6%
8th largest Ruminococcus 3.0%
⋮
top 50 Megasphaera 0.2%
649 other microbes, each a sliver 32.1%
18.9%

On average, 0.2% of the microbes in a healthy gut: among the 50 largest slices.

By age and sex

Every group, drawn the same way. Only some samples record age or sex, so each group says how many people it comes from. Tap one to see it above.

By age

367 people · 13% carry it 0.2% of the microbes top 40

198 people · 5 studies 18% carry it 0.03% of the microbes top 80

57 people · 23% carry it 0.05% of the microbes top 70

1,283 people · 27 studies 20% carry it 0.3% of the microbes top 40

142 people · 15 studies 8.4% carry it 0.2% of the microbes top 50

By sex

2,063 people · 21% carry it 0.2% of the microbes top 50

1,530 people · 29 studies 19% carry it 0.2% of the microbes top 50

Compared within studies that had both

In conditions

Compared with healthy people in the same studies, it’s less common in 3 conditions and more common in 6 conditions. Only studies that had both are counted.

A difference is an association: it doesn’t mean this microbe causes, prevents or treats any of these.

Strongest first, then the biggest gap · Each figure is 10 people

Chronic fatigue syndrome 302 people · 3 studies Less common in people with it Healthy 9.3% With it 3.3%
HIV infection 508 people · 7 studies More common in people with it Healthy 36% With it 47%
Hand, foot and mouth disease 34 people · 2 studies More common in people with it Healthy 33% With it 74%
Immune thrombocytopenia 45 people · 2 studies More common in people with it Healthy 13% With it 42%
IgA deficiency 206 people · 2 studies Less common in people with it Healthy 11% With it 2.4%
Urinary schistosomiasis 24 people · 1 study More common in people with it Healthy 0% With it 54%
Moyamoya disease 60 people · 1 study Less common in people with it Healthy 83% With it 45%
Cystic fibrosis 52 people · 1 study More common in people with it Healthy 26% With it 65%
Axial spondyloarthritis 48 people · 1 study More common in people with it Healthy 2.6% With it 27%

PubMed · human studies and reviews first

Recent research

No recent human studies or reviews yet. Probiome follows PubMed for the few hundred most-studied microbes; rarer species often only show up in large surveys. Search PubMed for this genus ↗

Megasphaera

Species in this genus

Its species' DNA

What its species can do

In healthy guts

Where these numbers come from

In conditions

Where these numbers come from

Also compared · 96 conditions

Studies disagree · 1

No meaningful difference · 95

Recent research