Effect of food thermal processing on the composition of the gut microbiota Rufián Henares, José Ángel Pastoriza de la Cueva, Silvia Cooking modifies food composition due to chemical reactions. Additionally, food composition shapes the human gut microbiota. Thus, the objective of this research was to unravel the effect of different food cooking methods on the structure and functionality of the gut microbiota. Common culinary techniques were applied to five foods, which were submitted to in vitro digestion-fermentation. Furosine, HMF (5- hydroxymethyl-furfural) and furfural were used as Maillard reaction indicators to control the heat treatment. Short chain fatty acids production was quantified as indicator of healthy metabolic output. Gut microbial community structure was analyzed through 16S rRNA. Both food composition and cooking methods modified the microbiota composition and release short chain fatty acids. In general, intense cooking technologies (roasting and grilling) increased the abundance of beneficial bacteria like Ruminococcus spp. or Bifidobacterium spp. compared to milder treatments (boiling). However, for some foods (banana or bread) intense cooking decreased the levels of healthy bacteria. 2024-01-23T09:49:38Z 2024-01-23T09:49:38Z 2018 journal article Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 2018, 66, 11-500-11509 https://hdl.handle.net/10481/87139 10.1021/acs.jafc.8b04077 eng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ embargoed access Atribución-NoComercial 4.0 Internacional American Chemical Society