title: In vitro fermentation of mulberry fruit polysaccharides by human fecal inocula and impact on microbiota.
abstract: This study investigated the in vitro fermentation of polysaccharides from Morus alba L., the contribution of its carbohydrates to the fermentation, and the effect on the composition of gut microbiota. Over 48 h of fermentation, the pH value in the fecal culture decreased from 7.12 to 6.14, and the total short chain fatty acids (SCFA) and acetic, propionic, and butyric acids all significantly increased. After 48 h of fermentation, 45.36 ± 1.36% of the total carbohydrates in the polysaccharide, including 35.72 ± 1.51% of arabinose, 23.1 ± 1.19% of galactose, 41.43 ± 1.52% of glucose, 26.36 ± 1.93% of rhamnose and 65.57 ± 1.07% of galacturic acid, were consumed. The increase in acetic and butyric acids was primarily due to the fermentation of galactose and galacturonic acid in the polysaccharide, while the increase in propionic acid resulted mainly from the fermentation of arabinose and glucose. In addition, the polysaccharide could modulate the gut microbiota composition by increasing the Bacteroidetes population and decreasing the Firmicutes population. The results may facilitate the development of food products known as prebiotics, aimed at improving gastrointestinal health.
authors.affiliation: College of Food Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, 381 Wushan Road, Guangzhou 510640, China. lfxfu@scut.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Chun
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: College of Food Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, 381 Wushan Road, Guangzhou 510640, China. lfxfu@scut.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: College of Food Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, 381 Wushan Road, Guangzhou 510640, China. lfxfu@scut.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Xiong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.affiliation: College of Food Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, 381 Wushan Road, Guangzhou 510640, China. lfxfu@scut.edu.cn and Department of Food Science, Stocking Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA.
authors.forename: Rui Hai
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology*; D005638:Fruit / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D064307:Microbiota / Q000502:physiology*; D031625:Morus / Q000737:chemistry*; D011134:Polysaccharides / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D005227:Fatty Acids; D011134:Polysaccharides