Oligosaccharides prepared by acid hydrolysis of polysaccharides from pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata) pulp and their prebiotic activities

Abstract

As a rich source of polysaccharides, pumpkin pulp was used for the production of oligosaccharides. To investigate the prebiotic potential of the oligosaccharides, prepared by acid hydrolysis of polysaccharides from pumpkin pulp, the effect of the oligosaccharides on lactobacilli growth was studied. The oligosaccharides were composed of galactose (99.03%) and glucose (0.97%). The molecular weight distribution of the oligosaccharides showed a larger part of low molecular weight fraction in a range from 5000 to 324 Da than the polysaccharides, which gave the oligosaccharides higher solubility. The oligosaccharides showed good resistance to hydrolysis by artificial human gastric juice and a-amylase, compared to the reference prebiotic inulin, and considerable capability to stimulate the growth of lactobacilli. In vitro studies showed that the number of lactobacilli was significantly greater than those in control medium when they were cultured in the medium supplemented with the oligosaccharides (P < 0.05), and there was no significant difference at the oligosaccharides group and the inulin group (P < 0.05).

Oligosaccharide production by hydrolysis of polysaccharides: a review

“…Apart from available oligosaccharides, hydrolytic or synthetic methods also allow obtaining low molecular weight carbohydrates. Most oligosaccharides used as prebiotics at present are produced by extraction from natural sources, obtained by the enzymatic or acid hydrolysis of polysaccharides, or produced by enzymatic transglycosylation (Du et al ., ). Low molecular weight FOS can be enzymatically synthesised from sucrose.…”

“…The production of oligosaccharides by hydrolysis usually requires the extraction of polysaccharides from the raw material, followed by depolymerisation (Du et al ., ). FOS and XOS are most commonly produced by hydrolysis of polysaccharides, which can be caused by chemical, enzymatic, or physical agents.…”

“…Oligosaccharides can be obtained by direct extraction from raw materials, whenever available (Ekvall et al ., ; Yang et al ., ; Coelho et al ., ). Extraction can also be necessary to solubilise and to isolate polysaccharides for subsequent depolymerisation (Hu et al ., ; Ávila‐Fernández et al ., ; Du et al ., ). Once extracted from raw materials, polysaccharides are more accessible to the acid, enzymatic, or physical depolymerisation processes.…”

Medicinal potential of cucurbita polysaccharides

“…Iz tog razloga, pojedinim naučnicima polisaharidi bundeve poslužili su kao dobar supstrat za proizvodnju oligosaharida primenom kisele sredine. Du i saradnici [26] pokazali su značajnu probiotsku aktivnost ovako nastalih oligosaharida. Naime, in vitro testom je pokazano da je broj bakterija Lactobacillus delbrucckii u kulturi bio značajno veći nakon suplementacije ovim jedinjenjima u odnosu na kontrolu.…”

Preparation, analysis and antioxidant evaluation of the controlled product of polysaccharide from Mactra veneriformis by mild acid hydrolysis

“…Recent studies demonstrated that natural polysaccharides exhibiting their physiological functions by oral administration to animals are correlated to the oligosaccharide derivatives produced by gastric acid or enzymes in digestive tract (Beveridge, & Richards, 1973;Agbagla-Dohnani, Cornu, & Broudiscou, 2012). It is well known that treatment of polysaccharide with acid hydrolysis can interrupt the polymer chain, generating the less molecular mass of carbohydrates (oligosaccharides) (Du, Song, Hu, Liao, Ni, & Li, 2011). The produced oligosaccharides exhibited improving physiological activities in contrast with their initial polysaccharides because they are easier to be absorbed into blood circulations and have higher bioavailability in organisms (Al Jamal, Roughley, & Ludwig, 2001;Juskiewicz, Zdunczyk, Jankowski, Krol, & Milala, 2008).…”