Animals are usually regarded as independent entities within their respective environments. However, within an organism, eukaryotes and prokaryotes interact dynamically to form the so-called metaorganism or holobiont, where each partner fulfils its versatile and crucial role. This review focuses on the interplay between microorganisms and multicellular eukaryotes in the context of host physiology, in particular aging and mucus-associated crosstalk. In addition to the interactions between bacteria and the host, we highlight the importance of viruses and nonmodel organisms. Moreover, we discuss current culturing and computational methodologies that allow a deeper understanding of underlying mechanisms controlling the physiology of metaorganisms.

中文翻译：

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微生物群对动物代谢生理学的功能。

动物通常被视为各自环境中的独立实体。然而，在有机体中，真核生物和原核生物动态相互作用，形成所谓的元有机体或全生物体，其中每个伙伴都发挥其多功能且至关重要的作用。本综述重点关注宿主生理学背景下微生物和多细胞真核生物之间的相互作用，特别是衰老和粘液相关的串扰。除了细菌和宿主之间的相互作用之外，我们还强调病毒和非模式生物的重要性。此外，我们还讨论了当前的培养和计算方法，可以更深入地了解控制元生物体生理学的潜在机制。