The National Institutes of Health launched a project today (Dec. 19) aimed at sequencing the myriad microbes that inhabit the human body. NIH has already awarded several millions of dollars in grant money to researchers engaging in the Human Microbiome Project, and more grant money is available. A total of $150 million in grants will be available over the next five years to researchers developing technologies and data analysis tools, undertaking demonstration projects, and studying the ethical, legal, and social implications of the effort.

Editor's note (posted Dec 19): This blog has been updated from a previous version.