Table 1.

Metabolites induced by inulin fermentation.

Interventions	Duration	Models or subjects	Metabolites with significantly upregulated expression	References
Inulin (10 g/L)	24 h	Fresh stool samples from 9 healthy humans (ex vivo system)	Acetate, propionate, and butyrate	(14)
FOS (12 g/d)-enriched inulin supplementation	0, 12, 24, and 48 h	Fecal cultures from pigs (in vitro fecal fermentation)	Succinate, lactate, propionate and butyrate	(16)
Inulin (24 g) plus glucose (75 g)/water (300 mL)	0-6 h	25 adults with BMI of 20-35 kg/m2	Propionate and butyrate	(15)
Inulin (24 g) plus high-fructose corn syrup (56 g)/drinks (400 mL)	4-6 h	12 healthy humans	Serum acetate, propionate, and butyrate	(17)
U-13C-inulin (0.5 g)/inulin (24 g) in a high-fat milkshake	7 h	14 healthy, overweight to obese men	Plasma propionate, butyrate, acetate	(18)
Inulin-type fructans	6 weeks	25 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus	Significantly increased fecal concentrations of total short-chain fatty acids, acetic acid and propionic acid	(19, 20)
Water with 20% sucrose and 5% inulin (w/w)	6 weeks	Male Sprague–Dawley rats (6 weeks)	Propionate and butyrate; fecal contents of indole-3-acetic acid and kynurenic acid	(21)
Basal diet containing 0.5% inulin	21 days	20 growing-pigs	Acetate and butyrate concentrations in cecum	(22)
Control diet with 20% inulin	3 weeks	BALB/c mice (6–8 weeks)	Fecal acetate, propionate and butyrate	(23)
High-fat/high-sucrose diet containing inulin (7.5% kcal)	12 weeks	Male C57BL/6J mice (8 weeks)	Acetic acid in jejunum; succinic acid, acetic acid and propionic acid in the rectal feces and portal vein serum	(24)