The microbiome refers to all the organisms that live inside or on your body. These organisms comprise bacteria, fungi, viruses, and more. The microbiome has been shown to play a crucial role in overall health, having been linked to a wide variety of diseases, symptoms, digestion, fitness performance, and healthy aging.

Jona identifies, down to the strain level, all the bacteria, fungi, viruses and other organisms in your sample, using shotgun metagenomic sequencing. This is the most comprehensive gut microbiome sequencing technology on the market. Many microbiome tests identify a limited number of microbial species. Jona’s advanced sequencing can identify over 170,000 microorganisms from DNA, providing a more comprehensive view of your gut ecosystem.

Jona's AI acts more like a bridge to the broader scientific community, summarizing what is known about associations to your specific microbiome from over 220,000 scientific studies, including how specific actions can change your microbiome.

Standard 16S and 18S sequencing have been used to identify bacteria and ITS sequencing has been used to identify fungi. These sequencing techniques, though less expensive, can only identify certain organisms and are often unable to distinguish different strains of a species.

Strain level identification is increasingly important as the scientific literature is showing that two different strains of the same species can affect someone's health quite differently.

Jona uses shotgun metagenomic sequencing, a comprehensive DNA sequencing method used to identify and analyze all the genetic material from a community of organisms (like the gut microbiome) simultaneously.

The name comes from the "shotgun" approach: instead of targeting a specific gene, the entire pool of DNA from a sample is "shattered" into millions of tiny random fragments, sequenced, and then digitally stitched back together. These sequences are then compared against massive databases to identify which species and strains they belong to, and their associated impact on the body.

Jona’s AI technology has been validated to provide accurate insights based on microbiome composition. However, results should be discussed with your healthcare provider and considered as one part of your overall health plan picture.

The human gut typically contains 200–500 microbial species, but trillions of individual organisms. Jona can identify over 170,000 microorganisms from DNA.