Modulation of Human Gut Microbiota In Vitro by Inulin-Type Fructan from Roots.

Inulin-type fructan (ITF) defined as a polydisperse carbohydrate consisting mainly of β-(2-1) fructosyl-fructose links exerts potential prebiotics properties by selectively stimulating the growth of and . This study reported the modulation of human gut microbiota in vitro by ITF from roots using 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing. The microbiota community structure analysis at genus levels showed that 50 mg/mL ITF significantly stimulated the growth of and . LEfSe analysis showed that ITF at 25 and 50 mg/mL primarily increased the relative abundance of genera and (LDA Score > 4), and genera and (LDA Score > 4) as well as , , and (LDA Score > 3.5), respectively. Meanwhile, ITF at 25 and 50 mg/mL exhibited the effects of lowering pH values of samples after 24 h fermentation ( < 0.05). The results indicated that ITF likely has potential in stimulating the growth of and as well as of human gut microbiota.