Metabolic modeling reveals determinants of prebiotic and probiotic treatment efficacy across multiple human intervention trials
Nick Quinn-Bohmann; Alex V. Carr; Sean M. Gibbons · 2026 · PLoS Biology
WASTE classifies this as Negative / Null Result Report · AI classification, approximate
The study found no significant effect — useful as a negative control or null benchmark for your own design.
Abstract
Prebiotic, probiotic, and combined (synbiotic) interventions often show variable outcomes across individuals, driven by complex interactions between introduced biotics, the endogenous microbiota, and the host diet. Predicting individual-specific success or failure of probiotic and prebiotic therapies remains a major challenge. Here, we leverage microbial community-scale metabolic models (MCMMs) to predict probiotic engraftment and microbiota-mediated short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) production in response to probiotic and prebiotic interventions. Using data from two human clinical trial cohorts,
Abstract by Nick Quinn-Bohmann; Alex V. Carr; Sean M. Gibbons, PLoS Biology (2026) — licensed CC BY 4.0.
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Metadata source: OpenAlex · DOI 10.1371/journal.pbio.3003638