Development of a Synbiotic Potential Score (SPS) as a Quantitative Approach for Selecting Putative Synergistic Strain-Prebiotic Candidates

AIMS: Synbiotics are increasingly being examined for their potential to enhance host health. Synergistic synbiotics are specifically designed such that the prebiotic component is selectively utilised by co-administered microorganisms, thereby providing enhanced benefits to the host. In this study, we propose a Synbiotic Potential Score (SPS), a quantitative, high-throughput method for assessing bacterial proliferation on selected dietary fibres that incorporates growth curve values. This score was applied to both rich and minimal media to assess the utilisation of difficult-to-digest fibres, such as resistant maltodextrin (RM). METHODS AND RESULTS: The SPS score was first calculated for eight putative probiotic strains grown on short chain fructooligosaccharides (scFOS), RM, and their combination. Lactiplantibacillus plantarum DSM 20205, Bifidobacterium breve JCM 7017, B. longum APC 1472, Bifidobacterium adolescentis DSM 20083, and Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis ATCC 27536 scored highest for scFOS, whereas their growth on RM compared to that on media without carbohydrates was minimal. Four strains were selected for further experiments in minimal MRS medium (minMRS). All four bacteria demonstrated improved utilisation of RM, as indicated by a higher SPS score, suggesting that minimal media better supports the specific utilisation of target prebiotics. CONCLUSIONS: Our approach reduces confounding factors, enabling clearer insights into prebiotic-probiotic interactions. This supports the systematic selection of effective strain-prebiotic pairs, guiding targeted synbiotic development for personalised nutrition and improved health outcomes. Future studies should validate our approach across multiple strains within the same species and using in vivo models.