Adsorption,in vitro digestion and human gut microbiota regulation characteristics of three Poria cocos polysaccharides

Poria cocos(PC)is a famous traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)and a widely used healthcare ingredient,which has antiobesity,enhancing immunity and improving sleep effects.Traditionally,only water-soluble poria polysaccharide(WSP)is extracted and applied for clinical application,while insoluble polysaccharide(alkali-soluble poria polysaccharide,ASP)is discarded as herb residue.However,the whole PC has also been historically utilized as functional herbal food.Considering the beneficial role of dietary fiber and the traditional use of PC,ASP may also contribute substantially to the therapy function of PC.Compared to WSP,little attention has been paid to ASP and ASP modified product carboxymethyl poria polysaccharide(CMP)which has been used as an antitumor adjuvant drug.In this study,the oil,cholesterol,metal ions and polyphenols adsorption ability,in vitro simulated digestive and the gut microbiota fermentation characteristics of WSP,ASP and CMP were studied to evaluate the functional values of three P.cocos polysaccharides(PCPs).The results showed that all three PCPs had good adsorption capacity on cholesterol,polyphenols and metal ions(Cd^(2+)/Zn^(2+)/Mg^(2+)),among which ASP showed the highest capacity than WSP and CMP.The adsorption capacity of all three PCPs on heavy metal ions(Cd^(2+)/Zn^(2+))was stronger than that of non-heavy metal ions(Mg^(2+));The in vitro digestibility of all three PCPs was very low,but WSP was slightly higher than ASP and CMP;Moreover,the indigestible residue of all three PCPs could improve the richness and diversity of gut microbiota,among which ASP had the greatest influence.In general,ASP and CMP could significantly promote the proliferation of some probiotics and inhibit the growth of some harmful bacteria.The gut microbiota diversity of CMP was reduced,but the richness of probiotics,especially Parabacteroides distasonis was significantly enhanced compared with the ASP group,and the growth of harmful bacteria Klebsiella pneumoniae was inhibited after CMP treatment.The short-chain fatty acids(SCFAs)analysis results showed that all three PCPs could significantly promote the production of acetic acid,propionic acid and the total acid content compared with blank control group,and SCFAs producing activity was positively correlated with the proliferative capacity of probiotics.Taken together,the good adsorption characteristics and gut microbiota regulatory activity of ASP may lay foundation for its lipid-lowering and immune-improving function.Additionally,the probiotic effect of CMP and ASP indicated that except for only use the water extract of PC in clinic,CMP and ASP also can be used in healthcare to take full advantage of this valuable medicine.

Impact of particle size of pulverized citrus peel tissue on changes in antioxidant properties of digested fluids during simulated in vitro digestion

To examine the effect of mechanical processing for plant-based materials on antioxidant properties during digestion,relationships between the size of pulverized plant tissue and changes in antioxidant activities during simulated in vitro digestion were investigated.The citrus peel tissue was pulverized and classified into four powder fractions followed their particle size distributions as 125−180m,180−355m,355−500m and 500−710m.These fractions were regarded as a plant tissue model with various degrees of cell damages.Powder samples were collected during the digestion and measured their particle sizes and colors.Besides,total phenolic content and antioxidant activities of digested fluid were also evaluated.The results showed that the powder color of smaller particles were significantly changed than the bigger ones.The bio-properties of digested fluid for the bigger particle sizes comparatively retained more than smaller ones at the simulated gastric stage.It also showed mostly stable during simulated gastric or small intestinal digestion stage.This suggested that the release of bioactive compounds from plant tissues during digestion could be related to their structural attributes such as degrees of cell damages which could be affected by processing methods and conditions.

A dual-axis chewing simulator for in vitro wear test of dental restoration materials

The wear rate of dental restoration materials on fixed, removable, and implant prostheses is important in the maintenance of cuspate form, masticatory efficiency and occlusal stability. Many permanent restoration materials such as composite, amalgam, gold, or porcelain show enough resistance to wear, but the wear rates of newly developed materials are generally unknown. To evaluate the wear rate of these dental materials, in vivo (clinic) and in vitro methods can be used. Since in vivo investigations are expensive, time consuming, and difficult to standardize, various in vitro methods have been developed. The use of a chewing machine is considered the best method, because a variety of wear mechanisms, temperature changes, and chemical effects of food and drink can be simulated simultaneously. This paper describes a dual axis chewing simulator for in vitro wear test of dental restoration materials. It consists of 8 test chambers, two stepper motors and related mechanism, a hot and cool water circle system, and a control unit. In the chambers, samples and antagonists make chewing movements vertically and Albert Ludwigs University, School of dentistry, Freiburg, Germany (Lü XY, Kern M and Strub JR) horizontally driven by the stepper motors so that the gnashing and slippage of two teeth against each other is simulated. A weighted test object is programmed to collide with a sample under precise operator control. The antagonists strike against the samples at various speeds from a slow nudge to snapping. Sample holders are designed for installation of varying samples, from single teeth to complete dentures. Two baths, six valves, and a group of pipes are used for the thermocycling. The machine can simulate various chewing modes in the mouth, including fully programmable thermal water cycling between 5℃ and 60℃ The control unit consists of a computer system with a built in specific program. Important operations such as “Start”, “Zero point”, and “Stop” are carried out by pressing the function keys on the front board of the unit. During the programming process and the simulation, several test modes and relevant test parameters are shown on the monitor. The control unit is connected via a series of interfaces to different controlled parts of the machine, such as the stepper motors and the pumps of cool and warm water.

Effect of heat-moisture treatment to raw paddy rice(Oryza sativa L.)On cooked rice properties

Heat moisture treatment is safe and non-chemical use method for modifying physicochemical properties and digestibility of starch.Slow starch digestion in rice product would provide numerous health benefi ts for the consumers.This study investigated the heat-moisture treatment to the raw paddy rice at 60 and 80ºC for 4 and 24 h,and their effects on the attributes of cooked rice.The fi rmness,adhesiveness,starch hydrolysis and morphological changes during in vitro digestion were examined.Results showed that heat-moisture treatment to raw paddy rice for 24 h signifi cantly reduced the moisture content and could increase the total starch content of the rice grain.The apparent amylose content ranged from 23.83%to 25.65%at the variation in the values between treated and untreated rice.Enhancement in the firmness and reduction in the starch hydrolysis was found in rice treated by longer heating time of 24 h.Meanwhile,the adhesiveness of cooked rice was decreased when increasing the heating temperature.The morphological observation showed that the treated rice exhibited a honey-comb-like structure during simulated gastric digestion,while the untreated rice displayed a non-uniform structure.Noteworthy,the porous structure observed in all digested rice grains during simulated small intestinal digestion could favor the starch hydrolysis.This study showed that the heat-moisture treatment to the raw paddy rice at certain conditions obviously influenced the attributes of cooked rice,especially on the starch hydrolysis,which would provide a fundamental knowledge to enable development and improvement of slow digestion rice products.