title: Prebiotic effects and intestinal fermentation of cereal arabinoxylans and arabinoxylan oligosaccharides in rats depend strongly on their structural properties and joint presence.
abstract: METHODS
  Cereal arabinoxylan (AX) is one of the main dietary fibers in a balanced human diet. To gain insight into the importance of structural features of AX for their prebiotic potential and intestinal fermentation properties, a rat trial was performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A water unextractable AX-rich preparation (WU-AX, 40% purity), water extractable AX (WE-AX, 81% purity), AX oligosaccharides (AXOS, 79% purity) and combinations thereof were included in a standardized diet at a 5% AX level. WU-AX was only partially fermented in the ceco-colon and increased the level of butyrate and of butyrate producing Roseburia/E. rectale spp. Extensive fermentation of WE-AX and/or AXOS reduced the pH, suppressed relevant markers of the proteolytic breakdown and induced a selective bifidogenic response. Compared with WE-AX, AXOS showed a slightly less pronounced effect in the colon as its fermentation was virtually complete in the cecum. Combining WU-AX and AXOS caused a striking synergistic increase in cecal butyrate levels. WU-AX, WE-AX and AXOS together combined a selective bifidogenic effect in the colon with elevated butyrate levels, a reduced pH and suppressed proteolytic metabolites.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prebiotic potential and fermentation characteristics of cereal AX depend strongly on their structural properties and joint presence.
authors: Laboratory of Food Chemistry and Biochemistry, Leuven Food Science and Nutrition Research Centre, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors: Bram
authors: B
authors: Damen
authors: Joran
authors: J
authors: Verspreet
authors: Annick
authors: A
authors: Pollet
authors: Willem F
authors: WF
authors: Broekaert
authors: Jan A
authors: JA
authors: Delcour
authors: Christophe M
authors: CM
authors: Courtin
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001644:Bifidobacterium / Q000187:drug effects; D002087:Butyrates / Q000378:metabolism; D004032:Diet; D004043:Dietary Fiber / Q000008:administration & dosage; D002523:Edible Grain / Q000737:chemistry*; D005285:Fermentation; D007413:Intestinal Mucosa / Q000378:metabolism*; D007422:Intestines / Q000187:drug effects*; D007777:Lactobacillaceae / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D009844:Oligosaccharides / Q000378:metabolism*; D056692:Prebiotics; D011897:Random Allocation; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D014990:Xylans / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D002087:Butyrates; D004043:Dietary Fiber; D009844:Oligosaccharides; D056692:Prebiotics; D014990:Xylans; C085118:arabinoxylan