Fast and flexible analysis of linked microbiome data with mako

Mako is a software tool that converts microbiome data and networks into a graph database and visualizes query results, thus allowing users without programming knowledge to carry out network-based queries. Mako is accompanied by a database compiled from 60 microbiome studies that is easily extended with the user's own data. We illustrate mako's strengths by enumerating association partners linked to propionate production and comparing frequencies of different network motifs across habitat types. This work describes mako, a tool for efficiently constructing and querying network databases with large-scale microbiome data.

Automated summary

Mako is a software tool that converts microbiome data and networks into a graph database, allowing users to carry out network-based queries without programming knowledge. It is accompanied by a database compiled from 60 microbiome studies, and users can easily extend it with their own data. This work demonstrates Mako's strengths through examples of association partners linked to propionate production and comparison of network motifs across different habitat types.