Functional and Nutritional Characteristics of Natural or Modified Wheat Bran Non-Starch Polysaccharides: A Literature Review

Abstract

Wheat bran (WB) consists mainly of different histological cell layers (pericarp, testa, hyaline layer and aleurone). WB contains large quantities of non-starch polysaccharides (NSP), including arabinoxylans (AX) and β-glucans. These dietary fibres have long been studied for their health effects on management and prevention of cardiovascular diseases, cholesterol, obesity, type-2 diabetes, and cancer. NSP benefits depend on their dose and molecular characteristics, including concentration, viscosity, molecular weight, and linked-polyphenols bioavailability. Given the positive health effects of WB, its incorporation in different food products is steadily increasing. However, the rheological, organoleptic and other problems associated with WB integration are numerous. Biological, physical, chemical and combined methods have been developed to optimise and modify NSP molecular characteristics. Most of these techniques aimed to potentially improve food processing, nutritional and health benefits. In this review, the physicochemical, molecular and functional properties of modified and unmodified WB are highlighted and explored. Up-to-date research findings from the clinical trials on mechanisms that WB have and their effects on health markers are critically reviewed. The review points out the lack of research using WB or purified WB fibre components in randomized, controlled clinical trials.

Intranasal Ion-Triggered In Situ Delivery System of Virus-like Particles: Development Using the Quality by Design Approach

“…The initial polysaccharides may have different molecular weights, viscosities, water solubilities, and degrees of esterification and sulphation, which directly affect not only the technological parameters of the system, but also the biological activity of carbohydrate biopolymers. The lack of generally accepted quantitative indicators for standardization of non-starch polysaccharide preparations makes it difficult to carry out a comparative assessment of the pharmacological efficacy of polysaccharides among themselves, as well as with drugs of similar action [ 8 , 9 ].…”

Expression and characterization of a novel microbial GH9 glucanase, IDSGLUC9-4, isolated from sheep rumen

“…The presence of hemicellulose, one of the glucan-like NSPs in grain, acts as an anti-nutritional factor for monogastric animals, broiler chickens and pigs, resulting in increased chyme viscosity, and decreased feed utilization and growth performance [1,2]. Strategies for eliminating the anti-nutritional effects of glucan have been proposed, using biophysical and biochemical approaches [3], of which enzymic digestion has become the favored method to degrade glucan-like NSPs, thereby reducing their undesirable viscosity. Glucanases are a group of glycoside hydrolases (GH) responsible for breakdown of glucan-like substrates into mono-and oligo-saccharides.…”

Xylanase supplementation in energy-deficient corn-based diets: impact on broiler growth, nutrient digestibility, chyme viscosity and carcass proximates

“…Wheat bran, being a by-product, holds potential as a poultry feed due to its variety of nutrients, such as vitamins and antioxidant compounds [ 10 ]. However, the inclusion of wheat bran, which contains approximately 43% to 60% of the total NSP including arabinoxylans, is limited in broiler diets [ 11 , 12 ]. The response of xylanase in diets incorporated with wheat bran has been effective in improving the growth performance and nutrient digestibility in broilers as previously reported [ 11 ].…”