Microbiome Research in GCC Countries: A Systematic Review of 110 Studies

110 microbiome studies from Gulf Cooperation Council countries, systematically reviewed up to January 31, 2025. The dataset was compiled by author Marwh G. Aldriwesh and published on figshare in May 2026. It synthesizes findings on human, animal, and environmental microbiome research distribution and methodologies.

Use Cases

• Analyze regional research output and gaps based on the distribution of human, animal, and environmental microbiome studies.
• Compare methodological approaches based on the reported use of observational designs and 16S rRNA gene sequencing.
• Identify thematic research focuses based on described topics like gut/oral microbiomes and metabolic disorders.
• Assess alignment with One Health principles based on the reported lack of integrated study designs.

Strengths

• Includes 110 systematically identified studies from a defined region.
• Provides a breakdown of study types: 49% human, 40% environmental, 11% animal.
• Specifies the temporal scope of the review, covering studies published up to January 31, 2025.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect geographic bias inherent to the focus on GCC countries.

Provenance

Source

figshare

Collection Method

Systematic review following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, searching PubMed, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, and EBSCO.

Time Range

Studies published up to January 31, 2025.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-05-29 05:35:27; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Gulf Cooperation Council countries: Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Bahrain.