Analysis of the fermentation kinetics and gut microbiota modulatory effect of dried chicory root reveals the impact of the plant-cell matrix rationalizing its conversion in the distal colon.

The cell matrix of plant foods has received little attention in prebiotic fiber research. We aimed to understand the impact of the plant cell matrix in dried chicory root on its breakdown in the human gut to explain its reported beneficial effects on gut and metabolic health. We applied digestion and fermentation models together with an gut barrier integrity model.

Concepts and criteria defining emerging microbiome applications.

In recent years, microbiomes and their potential applications for human, animal or plant health, food production and environmental management came into the spotlight of major national and international policies and strategies. This has been accompanied by substantial R&D investments in both public and private sectors, with an increasing number of products entering the market. Despite widespread agreement on the potential of microbiomes and their uses across disciplines, stakeholders and countries, there is no consensus on what defines a microbiome application.

Metatranscriptomic analysis indicates prebiotic effect of isomalto/malto-polysaccharides on human colonic microbiota in-vitro.

Isomalto/malto-polysaccharides (IMMPs) are a novel type of soluble dietary fibres with a prebiotic potential promoting growth of beneficial microbes in the gut. However, the mode of action of IMMPs remains unknown. Previous studies on IMMPs showed an increase in total bacteria, especially lactobacilli, and higher production of short chain fatty acids (SCFA) when IMMPs were fed to rats or used during in vitro fermentation.

Gut microbiota research nexus: One Health relationship between human, animal, and environmental resistomes.

The emergence and rapid spread of antimicrobial resistance is of global public health concern. The gut microbiota harboring diverse commensal and opportunistic bacteria that can acquire resistance via horizontal and vertical gene transfers is considered an important reservoir and sink of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). In this review, we describe the reservoirs of gut ARGs and their dynamics in both animals and humans, use the One Health perspective to track the transmission of ARG-containing bacteria between humans, animals, and the environment, and assess the impact of antimicrobial resistance on human health and socioeconomic development.