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Health Promoting Effects of Dietary Polysaccharides and Their Molecular Mechanisms

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A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Carbohydrates".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 May 2022) | Viewed by 10286

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Prof. Dr. Wenjuan Li

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Guest Editor

State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology, Nanchang University, Nanchang, China
Interests: isolation and characterization; health promotion; bioactivity; molecular mechanisms; structure–property relationships; interactions with other materials

Special Issue Information

Dear colleagues,

The Special Issue publishes the latest findings with respect to the health benefits and associated mechanisms of all dietary polysaccharides. The main areas of interest are isolation, chemical characterization, bioactivities, molecular mechanisms and application in areas such as food, health and medicine. We also encourage authors to submit research on the structure–activity relationship of polysaccharides. Topics featured in “Health Promoting Effects of Dietary Polysaccharides” must be accompanied with sufficient evidence in order to demonstrate their relevance to nutrients. For all dietary polysaccharides, the information referring to their supplier and structure information is ascertained. These findings should be new and novel rather than a reiteration of earlier or analogous published studies. All papers are should focus primarily on at least one named polysaccharides, which should appear in the title, the abstract and the body of the paper. Collectively, original full-length research articles and review articles are welcome in this Special Issue, and they should contribute in elucidating the unusual significance of “Health Promoting Effects of Dietary Polysaccharides.”

Prof. Dr. Wenjuan Li
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

polysaccharides
bioactivity
molecular mechanism
nutrition
immunity
antioxidant
application
modification

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 3626 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Consumption of Dietary Fiber with Different Physicochemical Properties during Late Pregnancy Alters the Gut Microbiota and Relieves Constipation in Sow Model

by Dongdong Lu, Yu Pi, Hao Ye, Yujun Wu, Yu Bai, Shuai Lian, Dandan Han, Dongjiao Ni, Xinhua Zou, Jinbiao Zhao, Shuai Zhang, Bas Kemp, Nicoline Soede and Junjun Wang

Nutrients 2022, 14(12), 2511; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/nu14122511 - 16 Jun 2022

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 3028

Abstract

Constipation is a common problem in sows and women during late pregnancy. Dietary fiber has potential in the regulation of intestinal microbiota, thereby promoting intestinal motility and reducing constipation. However, the effects of fibers with different physicochemical properties on intestinal microbe and constipation during late pregnancy have not been fully explored. In this study, a total of 80 sows were randomly allocated to control and one of three dietary fiber treatments from day 85 of gestation to delivery: LIG (lignocellulose), PRS (resistant starch), and KON (konjaku flour). Results showed that the defecation frequency and fecal consistency scores were highest in PRS. PRS and KON significantly increased the level of gut motility regulatory factors, 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), motilin (MTL), and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) in serum. Moreover, PRS and KON promoted the IL-10 level and reduced the TNF-α level in serum. Furthermore, maternal PRS and KON supplementation significantly reduced the number of stillborn piglets. Microbial sequencing analysis showed that PRS and KON increased short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs)-producing genera Bacteroides and Parabacteroides and decreased the abundance of endotoxin-producing bacteria Desulfovibrio and Oscillibacter in feces. Moreover, the relative abundance of Turicibacter and the fecal butyrate concentration in PRS were the highest. Correlation analysis further revealed that the defecation frequency and serum 5-HT were positively correlated with Turicibacter and butyrate. In conclusion, PRS is the best fiber source for promoting gut motility, which was associated with increased levels of 5-HT under specific bacteria Turicibacter and butyrate stimulation, thereby relieving constipation. Our findings provide a reference for dietary fiber selection to improve intestinal motility in late pregnant mothers. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Promoting Effects of Dietary Polysaccharides and Their Molecular Mechanisms)

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18 pages, 2584 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Gene Set Enrichment Analysis Reveals That Fucoidan Induces Type I IFN Pathways in BMDC

by Suyoung Choi, Sol A Jeon, Bu Yeon Heo, Ju-Gyeong Kang, Yunju Jung, Pham Thi Thuy Duong, Ik-Chan Song, Jeong-Hwan Kim, Seon-Young Kim and Jaeyul Kwon

Nutrients 2022, 14(11), 2242; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/nu14112242 - 27 May 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2707

Abstract

Fucoidan, a sulfated polysaccharide extracted from brown seaweed, has been proposed to effectively treat and prevent various viral infections. However, the mechanisms behind its antiviral activity are not completely understood. We investigate here the global transcriptional changes in bone marrow-derived dendritic cells (BMDCs) using RNA-Seq technology. Through both analysis of differentially expressed genes (DEG) and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA), we found that fucoidan-treated BMDCs were enriched in virus-specific response pathways, including that of SARS-CoV-2, as well as pathways associated with nucleic acid-sensing receptors (RLR, TLR, NLR, STING), and type I interferon (IFN) production. We show that these transcriptome changes are driven by well-known regulators of the inflammatory response against viruses, including IRF, NF-κB, and STAT family transcription factors. Furthermore, 435 of the 950 upregulated DEGs are classified as type I IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs). Flow cytometric analysis additionally showed that fucoidan increased MHCII, CD80, and CD40 surface markers in BMDCs, indicative of greater antigen presentation and co-stimulation functionality. Our current study suggests that fucoidan transcriptionally activates PRR signaling, type I IFN production and signaling, ISGs production, and DC maturation, highlighting a potential mechanism of fucoidan-induced antiviral activity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Promoting Effects of Dietary Polysaccharides and Their Molecular Mechanisms)

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24 pages, 5413 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Formulation, Characterization and Optimization of β–Glucan and Pomegranate Juice Based Films for Its Potential in Diabetes

by Ionut Avramia and Sonia Amariei

Nutrients 2022, 14(10), 2142; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/nu14102142 - 20 May 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1834

Abstract

The aim of this study was to develop films based on β–glucans in association with pomegranate juice for its potential in metabolic disorders such as diabetes due to plenty of bioactive compounds from the film composition. Initially, a Box-Behnken design was generated by varying the level of β–glucan content (0.5, 1, 1.5 g), sodium alginate (0.2, 0.4, 0.6 g) and pomegranate juice (10, 20, 30 mL) for development of films. Subsequently, glycerin was added as 25% of the total dry matter. The optimization of the films prepared by the solvent casting method was conducted based on the different responses such as: water vapor transmission rate (WVTR), water vapor permeability (WVP), thickness, density, moisture content, solubility, film opacity and color. The water activity profile and FT–IR analysis were performed in all tests. The model was used to determine the optimal experimental values considering that the optimal film will make a sustained contribution to diabetes. The optimal values of the film sample made of β–glucans, sodium alginate, pomegranate juice and glycerin make it befitting for packaging dry powdered pharmaceuticals. Finally, antimicrobial activity against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, UV barrier properties and microcrack and pore detections through SEM were also investigated for the optimal film sample. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Promoting Effects of Dietary Polysaccharides and Their Molecular Mechanisms)

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19 pages, 3071 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Relevance of β-Glucan Molecular Properties on Its Suitability as Health Promoting Bread Ingredient

by Marcus Schmidt, Elisabeth Sciurba, Sharline Nikolay, Alexandra Hüsken and Inga Smit

Nutrients 2022, 14(8), 1570; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/nu14081570 - 09 Apr 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2225

Abstract

The fate of β-glucan (BG) health promoting properties during food production is crucial, but not predictable yet. Therefore, high molar mass BG (hBG) and control BG (cBG) were extracted from two barley varieties, characterized and added to wheat breads at levels of 3% and 6%. Bread quality criteria, carbohydrate contents and BG content and structural properties were determined. Additionally, breads were subjected to an in vitro digestion. The BG content in the chyme, molar mass, molar ratio, viscosity and bile acid retention were determined. The hBG and the cBG decreased loaf volume and increased crumb hardness with increasing BG content. The reduction in BG content during bread making was similar for hBG and cBG, but the molar mass of cBG decreased to a greater extent. As a result, only 10% of cBG entering in vitro digestion were found in the chyme afterwards, while 40% of the ingested hBG were detected. Molar mass reduction was much more severe for cBG compared to hBG. The use of hBG showed higher viscosity and better bile acid retention, indicating cholesterol lowering properties, compared to similar or higher amounts of cBG. These results provide valuable knowledge on the criteria to select BG-rich raw materials for ideal health promoting properties. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Promoting Effects of Dietary Polysaccharides and Their Molecular Mechanisms)

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