Effect of viscosity by indigestible polysaccharides on digestive tracts in rats

Abstract

　Effects of viscous indigestive polysaccharides on digestive tracts were investigated in 4 week aged male rats. In three experiments, rats fed the diets containing 5% polysaccharides for 24 days.

　In Exp.1, the organ weights, their contents weights and viscosity at 5 hours after feeding cellulose, gellan gum, tamarind gum, psyllium seed gum, guar gum and xanthan gum were determined. The viscosities of stomach and small intestinal contents were highest in xanthan gum group and lowest in guar gum group, and were not associated with the original viscosities of the polysaccharides.

　In Exp.2, the solid contents and the viscosities of stomach and small intestinal contents were determined at 0hr after 5hr fasting and at 2hr after feeding of 5g cellulose, gellan gum, tamarind gum, psyllium seed gum and xanthan gum diets. The solid stomach contents in the xanthan gum group at 2hr was significantly lowest and the viscosity of the contents was highest among the groups.

　In Exp.3, the similar experiment as Exp.2 were conducted at 0hr after fasting and at 2hr and 5hr after 5g feeding of cellulose, psyllium seed gum and guar gum diets. The solid stomach contents at 2hr was lowest and the viscosity was highest in the guar gum group.

　The results of Exp.2 and 3 suggest that the high viscous polysaccharides accelerate the moving of the diets from the stomach to the small intestine. However, the viscosities of original solution, diet emulsions and digestive tract contents were different each other. The results suggest that each polysaccharide interacts with the dietary components and/or digestive components and changed the viscosity and physiological characters.