Study on the interaction between β-carotene and gut microflora using an in vitro fermentation model

β-Carotene,a typical non-oxygenated carotenoid,is the most efficient source of retinol(VA).The low bio-availability ofβ-carotene lead to large accumulation in colon;however,the relationship betweenβ-carotene and gut microflora remains unclear.This study intends to explore the interaction betweenβ-carotene and gut microflora using an in vitro fermentation model.After 24 h fermentation,the degradation rate ofβ-carotene was(64.28±6.23)%,which was 1.46 times that of the group without gut microflora.Meanwhile,the production of VA was nearly 2 times that of the group without gut microflora,indicating that the gut microflora can metabolizeβ-carotene into VA.β-Carotene also influences the production of short-chain fatty acids(SCFAs),the production of total SCFAs in 0.5 mg/mLβ-carotene(BCM)group was(44.00±1.16)mmol/L,which was 2.26 times that of the blank control(BLK)group.Among them,the production of acetic acid in BCM group was(19.06±0.82)mmol/L,which was 2.64 time that of the BLK group.Furthermore,β-carotene significantly affected the structure and composition of gut microflora,increasing the abundance of Roseburia,Parasutterella and Lachnospiraceae,and decreasing the abundance of Dialister,Collinsella and Enterobacter(P<0.05).This study provides a new way to understand howβ-carotene works in human body with gut microflora.