Abstract
We prepared new oligosaccharides from corn fiber by partial hydrolysis. The oligosaccharides contained both neutral and acidic components, with the former consisting mainly of mixtures of arabinoxylo-oligosaccharides and xylooligosaccharides, while the latter were occurred primarily as glucronoxylooligo-saccharides. In this study, we investigated the physiological effects of our oligosaccharides in rats fed diets containing the oligosaccharides at 2%, 4% or 6% for 4 weeks. The weight of the cecum, the proportion of Bifidobacterium in cecal contents, and fecal water content were all found to have increased significantly. The pH of cecal contents decreased significantly in rats fed the oligosaccharides. These results show that the oligosaccharides may selectively enhance the growth of Bifidobacterium in intestine and improve intestinal microbial balance. Adipose tissue decreased significantly in rats fed the oligosaccharides. There were no significant differences in the concentrations of serum lipids between the control group and the group, fed oligosaccharides, although serum triacylglycerol levels tended to decrease in response to oligosaccharide administration. It therefore appears that the intake of oligosaccharides may influence lipid metabolism. Bifidobacterium in intestinal microbiota are useful for maintaining good health of the host. These results indicate that the oligosaccharides from corn fiber might have equivalent physiological effects in humans.
