What early method was used to assign taxa by clustering sequences in initial analysis?
Answer
Relying on similarity thresholds, like 97% identity
In the foundational phase of microbiome analysis, before highly refined classification algorithms were standard, researchers faced the challenge of defining what constituted a 'species' based purely on sequence data. The common methodology adopted involved grouping DNA sequences based on how similar they were to each other. This grouping, known as clustering, was typically performed using a predefined similarity threshold, often set at 97% identity. Sequences that met or exceeded this threshold were lumped together and assigned a preliminary taxonomic designation, establishing an operational way to count distinct groups within the sample data.
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