title: Prebiotics: why definitions matter.
abstract: The prebiotic concept was introduced twenty years ago, and despite several revisions to the original definition, the scientific community has continued to debate what it means to be a prebiotic. How prebiotics are defined is important not only for the scientific community, but also for regulatory agencies, the food industry, consumers and healthcare professionals. Recent developments in community-wide sequencing and glycomics have revealed that more complex interactions occur between putative prebiotic substrates and the gut microbiota than previously considered. A consensus among scientists on the most appropriate definition of a prebiotic is necessary to enable continued use of the term.
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68583-0919, USA. Electronic address: rhutkins1@unl.edu.
authors.forename: Robert W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Hutkins
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68583-0919, USA; School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68583-0919, USA.
authors.forename: Janina A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Krumbeck
authors.affiliation: Metabolism and Nutrition Research Group, Louvain Drug Research Institute, Université Catholique de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Laure B
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Bindels
authors.affiliation: Université Catholique de Louvain, Louvain Drug Research Institute, Metabolism and Nutrition Research Group, WELBIO (Walloon Excellence in Life Sciences and Biotechnology), Av. E. Mounier, 73 B1.73.11, B-1200 Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Patrice D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Cani
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Science, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801, USA.
authors.forename: George
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fahey
authors.affiliation: Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA.
authors.forename: Yong Jun
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Goh
authors.affiliation: Whistler Center for Carbohydrate Research, Department of Food Science, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA.
authors.forename: Bruce
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hamaker
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
authors.forename: Eric C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Martens
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science & Technology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA.
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Mills
authors.affiliation: Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, The University of Reading, PO Box 226, Whiteknights, Reading RG6 6AP, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Robert A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Rastal
authors.affiliation: Sensus BV (Royal Cosun), Borchwerf 3, 4704RG Roosendaal, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Elaine
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Vaughan
authors.affiliation: Dairy & Food Culture Technologies, Centennial, CO 80122, USA.
authors.forename: Mary Ellen
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Sanders
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003256:Community Participation; D019649:Food Industry; D000069196:Gastrointestinal Microbiome; D006801:Humans; D056692:Prebiotics
chemical_list: D056692:Prebiotics