Inter-individual variation in isoflavone absorption depends on gut microbial degradation and affects the efficacy of these compounds. We hypothesized that inter-individual variation in fecal isoflavone disappearance coincided with variation in bacterial species. In vitro anaerobic fecal disappearance of isoflavones was measured from 33 participants by HPLC. Fecal microbial 16S rRNA variable region PCR products were obtained from 4 participants with the greatest and least genistein or...