The influence of in vitro pectin fermentation on the human fecal microbiome

Pectin is a complex dietary fiber and a prebiotic. To investigate pectin-induced changes in the gut microbiome and their effects on the short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) production, we performed in vitro pectin fermentation using the feces of three Korean donors. The pectin degradations in all three donors were observed. While the donors displayed differences in baseline gut microbiota composition, commonly increased bacteria after pectin fermentation included Lachnospira, Dorea, Clostridium, and Sutterella. Regarding SCFAs, acetate levels rapidly increased with incubation with pectin, and butyrate levels also increased after 6 h of incubation. The results suggest that pectin fermentation increases bacterial species belonging to Clostridium cluster XIV (Lachnospira, Dorea, and Clostridium), with Lachnospira displaying the greatest increase. The results also confirm that pectin fermentation leads to the production of acetate and butyrate.