title: Inulin-type fructan fermentation by bifidobacteria depends on the strain rather than the species and region in the human intestine.
abstract: Inulin-type fructans (ITF) are known to cause a health-promoting bifidogenic effect, although the ITF degradation capacity of bifidobacteria in different intestinal regions remains unclear. The present study aims at offering new insights into this link, making use of a collection of 190 bifidobacterial strains, encompassing strains from gut biopsies (terminal ileum and proximal colon; mucosa-associated strains) and the simulator of the human intestinal microbial ecosystem (SHIME®; proximal and distal colon vessels; lumen-associated strains). A multivariate data analysis of all fermentation data revealed four clusters corresponding with different types of ITF degradation fingerprints, which were not correlated with the region in the intestine, suggesting that the degradation of ITF is uniform along the human intestine. Strains from cluster 1 consumed fructose, while strains from cluster 2 consumed more oligofructose than fructose. Higher fructose and oligofructose consumption was characteristic for clusters 3 and 4 strains, which degraded inulin too. In general, the mucosa-associated strains from biopsy origin seemed to be more specialized in the consumption of fructose and oligofructose, while the lumen-associated strains from SHIME origin displayed a higher degradation degree of inulin. Further, intra-species variability in ITF degradation was found, indicating strain-specific variations. The coexistence of different bifidobacterial strains with different ITF degradation fingerprints within the same intestinal region suggests cooperation for the degradation of ITF, with opportunities for cross-feeding on strain and/or species level.
authors: Research Group of Industrial Microbiology and Food Biotechnology, Department of Bioengineering Sciences, Faculty of Sciences and Bioengineering Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Marija
authors: M
authors: Selak
authors: Research Group of Industrial Microbiology and Food Biotechnology, Department of Bioengineering Sciences, Faculty of Sciences and Bioengineering Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Audrey
authors: A
authors: Rivière
authors: Research Group of Industrial Microbiology and Food Biotechnology, Department of Bioengineering Sciences, Faculty of Sciences and Bioengineering Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Frédéric
authors: F
authors: Moens
authors: Laboratory of Microbial Ecology and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure links 653, B-9000, Ghent, Belgium.
authors: Pieter
authors: P
authors: Van den Abbeele
authors: Laboratory of Microbial Ecology and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure links 653, B-9000, Ghent, Belgium.
authors: Annelies
authors: A
authors: Geirnaert
authors: Institute of Dairy Science and Probiotics, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Groblje 3, 1230, Domžale, Slovenia.
authors: Irena
authors: I
authors: Rogelj
authors: Research Group of Industrial Microbiology and Food Biotechnology, Department of Bioengineering Sciences, Faculty of Sciences and Bioengineering Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Frédéric
authors: F
authors: Leroy
authors: Research Group of Industrial Microbiology and Food Biotechnology, Department of Bioengineering Sciences, Faculty of Sciences and Bioengineering Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium. ldvuyst@vub.ac.be.
authors: Luc
authors: L
authors: De Vuyst
mesh_terms: D001644:Bifidobacterium / Q000378:metabolism*; D005285:Fermentation; D005630:Fructans / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D007422:Intestines / Q000382:microbiology*
chemical_list: D005630:Fructans
keywords: Bifidobacteria; Colon fermentation; Cross-feeding; Inulin-type fructans