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The\n              <jats:italic>C. elegans<\/jats:italic>\n              cuticular surface serves as a barrier and first point of contact with their microbial environments. In this study, we identify microbes from\n              <jats:italic>C. elegans<\/jats:italic>\n              natural habitats that associate with its cuticle, constituting a simple \u201cskin microbiome.\u201d We rear our animals on a modified CeMbio, mCeMbio, a consortium of ecologically relevant microbes. We first combine standard microbiological methods with an adapted micro skin-swabbing tool to describe the skin-resident bacteria on the\n              <jats:italic>C. elegans<\/jats:italic>\n              surface. Furthermore, we conduct 16S rRNA gene sequencing studies to identify relative shifts in the proportion of mCeMbio bacteria upon surface-sterilization, implying distinct skin- and gut-microbiomes. We find that some strains of bacteria, including\n              <jats:italic>Enterobacter<\/jats:italic>\n              sp. JUb101\n              <jats:italic>,<\/jats:italic>\n              are primarily found on the nematode skin, while others like\n              <jats:italic>Stenotrophomonas indicatrix<\/jats:italic>\n              JUb19 and\n              <jats:italic>Ochrobactrum vermis<\/jats:italic>\n              MYb71 are predominantly found in the animal\u2019s gut. Finally, we show that this skin microbiome promotes host cuticle integrity in harsh environments. Together, we identify a skin microbiome for the well-studied nematode model and propose its value in conferring host fitness advantages in naturalized contexts.\n            <\/jats:p>\n          <\/jats:sec>\n          <jats:sec>\n            <jats:title>IMPORTANCE<\/jats:title>\n            <jats:p>\n              The genetic model organism\n              <jats:italic>C. elegans<\/jats:italic>\n              has recently emerged as a tool for understanding host\u2013microbiome interactions. Nearly all of these studies either focus on pathogenic or gut-resident microbes. Little is known about the existence of native, nonpathogenic skin microbes or their function. We demonstrate that members of a modified\n              <jats:italic>C. elegans<\/jats:italic>\n              model microbiome, mCeMbio, can adhere to the animal's cuticle and confer protection from noxious environments. We combine a novel micro-swab tool, the first 16S microbial sequencing data from relatively unperturbed\n              <jats:italic>C. elegans<\/jats:italic>\n              , and physiological assays to demonstrate microbially mediated protection of the skin. This work serves as a foundation to explore wild\n              <jats:italic>C. elegans<\/jats:italic>\n              skin microbiomes and use\n              <jats:italic>C. elegans<\/jats:italic>\n              as a model for skin research.\n            <\/jats:p>\n          <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1128\/spectrum.00169-24","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,7,9]],"date-time":"2024-07-09T13:02:05Z","timestamp":1720530125000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1128\/asmj-crossmark-policy-page","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":5,"title":["Identification and characterization of a skin microbiome on\n            <i>Caenorhabditis elegans<\/i>\n            suggests environmental microbes confer cuticle protection"],"prefix":"10.1128","volume":"12","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0000-7515-6964","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Nadia B.","family":"Haghani","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory, The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, California, USA"},{"name":"University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0578-3935","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Robert H.","family":"Lampe","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Microbial and Environmental Genomics, J. Craig Venter Institute, La Jolla, California, USA"},{"name":"Integrative Oceanography Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4347-3997","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Buck S.","family":"Samuel","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research, Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2522-8338","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sreekanth H.","family":"Chalasani","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory, The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, California, USA"},{"name":"University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4542-2800","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Molly A.","family":"Matty","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory, The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, California, USA"},{"name":"Biology, University of Portland, Portland, Oregon, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"235","reference":[{"key":"e_1_3_4_2_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/ncomms8735"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_3_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jaci.2018.01.019"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_4_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0013963"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_5_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.chom.2015.04.011"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_6_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/nature14052"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_7_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/nrmicro.2017.157"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_8_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/s41586-020-2395-5"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_9_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/nature12479"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_10_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/nature04216"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_11_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1126\/science.1124234"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_12_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/cmi.12308"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_13_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3389\/fmicb.2016.01230"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_14_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1126\/science.1225152"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_15_2","first-page":"430","article-title":"Adhesion of conidia of Drechmeria coniospora to Caenorhabditis elegans wild type and mutants","volume":"26","author":"Jansson H-B","year":"1994","unstructured":"Jansson H-B. 1994. 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