Department of Biotechnology, National Institute of Technology Andhra Pradesh, Tadepalligudem, Andhra Pradesh 534101, India.
Food Funct. 2018 Oct 17;9(10):5059-5073. doi: 10.1039/c8fo01296b.
Diverse human intestinal microbiota are regarded as a prerequisite for a healthy intestine. Commercial prebiotic products have a limited ability to provide microbial diversity in the human gut, because they mostly comprise oligomers of the same monosaccharide residues and a small fraction of them can reach the distal colon. Therefore, the demand for diverse prebiotic ingredients and dietary fibers with improved functional properties is increasing tremendously. The main sources of carbohydrates in our diet are plant-derived polysaccharides, which are consumed by the bacteria present in the intestine. Among these, pectin-derived poly- and oligosaccharides serve as the best alternative, as they are resistant to human gastric juice and are fermented slowly in the large intestine to impart a prebiotic effect. The main components of pectin are polygalacturonic acids in association with neutral polysaccharides such as arabinan, arabinogalactan, and galactan. The present review deals with the health-related functional properties of pectic poly- and oligosaccharides and their applications in the food industry. Different mechanisms involved in the hydrolysis of these carbohydrates by the intestinal bacteria and in maintaining the microbial diversity of the intestine are also discussed. It also emphasizes the current methods for the production and purification of different pectins and their oligosaccharides.
多样化的人类肠道微生物群被认为是健康肠道的前提。商业上的益生元产品提供人类肠道微生物多样性的能力有限，因为它们主要由相同单糖残基的低聚物组成，而且其中只有一小部分能够到达远端结肠。因此，对具有改善功能特性的多样化益生元成分和膳食纤维的需求正在迅速增加。我们饮食中的碳水化合物主要来源于植物来源的多糖，这些多糖被肠道中的细菌所消耗。在这些多糖中，果胶衍生的多聚糖和低聚糖是最好的替代品，因为它们能抵抗人体胃液，并且在大肠中缓慢发酵，从而产生益生元的作用。果胶的主要成分是与中性多糖（如阿拉伯聚糖、阿拉伯半乳聚糖和半乳糖聚糖）结合的聚半乳糖醛酸。本综述涉及果胶多聚糖和低聚糖与健康相关的功能特性，以及它们在食品工业中的应用。还讨论了肠道细菌水解这些碳水化合物和维持肠道微生物多样性的不同机制。它还强调了目前生产和纯化不同果胶及其低聚糖的方法。
