** AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** CONSUMING DIETARY FIBER IS ASSOCIATED WITH MANY HEALTH BENEFITS SUCH AS A LOW RISK OF CORONARY HEART DISEASE, STROKE, OBESITY, AND GASTROINTESTINAL DISEASES. FERMENTATION OF DIETARY FIBER IN THE HUMAN GUT GENERATES SHORT-CHAIN FATTY ACIDS (SCFAS), WHICH HAVE A CONSIDERABLE BENEFICIAL IMPACT ON HUMAN PHYSIOLOGICAL PROCESSES, INCLUDING IMPROVED GUT BARRIER INTEGRITY AND REGULATION OF THE IMMUNE SYSTEM. INSOLUBLE DIETARY FIBERS (IDFS) ARE A MAJOR PART OF DIETARY FIBER; THEY ARE CONSIDERED LARGELY NON-FERMENTABLE AND CANNOT BE USED BY THE GUT BACTERIA, ONLY EXERTING A FECAL BULKING EFFECT AND STIMULATING GUT MOBILITY. THE OVERALL GOAL OF THIS PROJECT IS TO DEVELOP AN ECONOMICAL PROCESS TO PRODUCE HIGHLY FERMENTABLE IDFS AND PROMOTE GUT HEALTH. ALSO, THIS PROJECT AIMS TO UNDERSTAND THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF IDFS AND THEIR FERMENTABILITY BY GUT BACTERIA. AFTER COMPLETING THIS PROJECT, WE WILL BE EQUIPPED TO DEVELOP PROCESSING TECHNOLOGIES TO PRODUCE HIGHLY FERMENTABLE IDFS TO IMPROVE HUMAN HEALTH. THE OUTCOMES OF THE PROJECT WILL HAVE A POSITIVE IMPACT ON HUMAN HEALTH AND SOCIAL ECONOMICS IN THE U.S. ALSO, THIS PROJECT WILL SUPPORT THE FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRY TO CONVERT FOOD PROCESSING BYPRODUCTS (SUCH AS CORN FIBER, GRAPE POMACE, AND SUGARCANE BAGASSE) INTO HIGH-VALUE DIETARY FIBERS.