title: Influence of glycosidic linkages and molecular weight on the fermentation of maltose-based oligosaccharides by human gut bacteria.
abstract: A structure-function study was carried out to increase knowledge of how glycosidic linkages and molecular weights of carbohydrates contribute toward the selectivity of fermentation by gut bacteria. Oligosaccharides with maltose as the common carbohydrate source were used. Potentially prebiotic alternansucrase and dextransucrase maltose acceptor products were synthesized and separated into different molecular weights using a Bio-gel P2 column. These fractions were characterized by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight. Nonprebiotic maltooligosaccharides with degrees of polymerization (DP) from three to seven were commercially obtained for comparison. Growth selectivity of fecal bacteria on these oligosaccharides was studied using an anaerobic in vitro fermentation method. In general, carbohydrates of DP3 showed the highest selectivity towards bifidobacteria; however, oligosaccharides with a higher molecular weight (DP6-DP7) also resulted in a selective fermentation. Oligosaccharides with DPs above seven did not promote the growth of "beneficial" bacteria. The knowledge of how specific structures modify the gut microflora could help to find new prebiotic oligosaccharides.
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Biosciences, Whiteknights P.O. Box 226, Reading RG6 6AP, Berkshire, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: María Luz
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Sanz
authors.forename: Gregory L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Côté
authors.forename: Glenn R
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Gibson
authors.forename: Robert A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Rastall
mesh_terms: D001419:Bacteria / Q000254:growth & development; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D005285:Fermentation; D006027:Glycosides / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D007422:Intestines / Q000382:microbiology*; D008320:Maltose / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D008970:Molecular Weight; D009844:Oligosaccharides / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry; D019032:Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship
chemical_list: D006027:Glycosides; D009844:Oligosaccharides; D011108:Polymers; D008320:Maltose