title: Production, health aspects and potential food uses of dairy prebiotic galactooligosaccharides.
abstract: Galactooligosaccharides are sugars composed of 3-10 molecules of galactose and glucose via a transgalactosylation reaction mediated by the enzyme β-galactosidase. Prebiotics are non-digestible food ingredients that pass through the upper digestive system relatively intact and ferment in the lower colon, producing short-chain fatty acids that support the growth of supplemented or indigenous colonic microbiota. Galactooligosaccharides and other prebiotic ingredients are increasingly being recognized as useful dietary tools for the modulation of the colonic microflora toward a healthy balance. Galactooligosaccharides compare well to other oligosaccharides in terms of their prebiotic, immunomodulation, and functional properties in foods. This review elucidates the galactooligosaccharide production process from refined lactose and/or cheese whey permeates, galactooligosaccharide market share and economic value, their health properties, and potential food applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA. lamsal@iastate.edu
authors.forename: Buddhi P
authors.initials: BP
authors.lastname: Lamsal
mesh_terms: D003106:Colon / Q000382:microbiology*; D003132:Commerce; D003611:Dairy Products; D004032:Diet; D055951:Functional Food; D005690:Galactose / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006262:Health; D006801:Humans; D007155:Immunologic Factors / Q000494:pharmacology*; D054892:Metagenome / Q000187:drug effects; D009844:Oligosaccharides / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D056692:Prebiotics
chemical_list: D007155:Immunologic Factors; D009844:Oligosaccharides; D056692:Prebiotics; D005690:Galactose