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Puhlmann et al. Microbiome Res Rep 2024;3:28 https://dx.doi.org/10.20517/mrr.2024.04 Page 9 of 20

Figure 4. Fermentation metabolites, pH, and gas production measured during in vitro fermentation of control (Control; only inoculum),
inulin (Inulin), and dried chicory root powder (Powder) and cubes (Cubes) at baseline (t = 0 h), 6 h, 24 h, and 48 h and the respective
consecutive changes between each sampling period. Details on statistical testing are provided in Supplementary Table 4.

chicory root products [Supplementary Table 4]. As acetate is the most abundant SCFA, its changes also
dominated the observed increases in total SCFAs, which were similar for inulin and dried chicory root
products [Figure 4]. Lactate also increased rapidly between 0 and 6 h, with the highest levels at 6 h for dried
chicory root cubes that differed statistically significantly from control, inulin, and dried chicory root
powder. Between 6 h and 24 h, lactate was partially consumed in all conditions with the highest decrease in
dried chicory root cubes (-1.39 ± 0.18 mM), which was statistically significantly different from inulin (-0.34
± 0.18 mM, P = 0.003) but not dried chicory root powder (-0.72 ± 0.02 mM). At 48 h, lactate had largely
disappeared in all conditions [Figure 4]. The production of BCFAs started from 6 h onwards and was the
highest in the control, followed by dried chicory root powder, cubes, and inulin [Figure 4]. Yet, their levels