State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology, School of Food Science and Technology, and International Joint Laboratory on Food Safety, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, 214122, China.
Air Force Medical Center, PLA, Beijing, 100142. China.
Carbohydr Polym. 2021 Mar 15;256:117571. doi: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2020.117571. Epub 2021 Jan 5.
Aloe polysaccharides (APs) are well-known plant polysaccharides, but little is known about their digestion and fermentation characteristics in vitro. In this study, the molecular weight of APs had no significant changes after gastric and intestinal digestion. During the fecal fermentation, the content of volatiles and pH value decreased continuously, while the short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) concentration increased significantly. Additionally, the abundance of the microbiota associated with the metabolism of SCFAs was increased, including Prevotella, Catenibacterium, Lachnospiraceae, and Coprococcus, while the harmful microbiota was decreased, like Escherichia-Shigella, and Veillonella. Moreover, bioinformatics analysis indicated that APs boosted fructose and mannose metabolism, and the gene expressions of enzymes, containing mannose-6-phosphate isomerase [EC:5.3.1.8]. Structural equation modeling also highlighted that SCFAs-producing microbiota were primary degraders of APs, suggesting APs may facilitate the manufacture of functional foods with the purpose of maintaining intestinal health.
芦荟多糖（APs）是众所周知的植物多糖，但关于其在体外的消化和发酵特性知之甚少。在本研究中，APs 的分子量在胃和肠道消化后没有明显变化。在粪便发酵过程中，挥发性物质的含量和 pH 值持续下降，而短链脂肪酸（SCFAs）的浓度显著增加。此外，与 SCFAs 代谢相关的微生物群落的丰度增加，包括普雷沃氏菌属、拟杆菌属、毛螺菌科和粪球菌属，而有害微生物群落减少，如大肠杆菌-志贺氏菌属和韦荣球菌属。此外，生物信息学分析表明，APs 促进了果糖和甘露糖代谢，并且包含甘露糖-6-磷酸异构酶[EC：5.3.1.8]的酶的基因表达增加。结构方程模型也强调了产生 SCFAs 的微生物群是 APs 的主要降解者，这表明 APs 可能有助于制造具有维持肠道健康功能的功能性食品。
