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Lupin kernel fiber consumption modifies fecal microbiota in healthy men as determined by rRNA gene fluorescent in situ hybridization

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Abstract

Background

Changes in the composition of gastrointestinal microbiota by dietary interventions using pro- and prebiotics provide opportunity for improving health and preventing disease. However, the capacity of lupin kernel fiber (LKFibre), a novel legume-derived food ingredient, to act as a prebiotic and modulate the colonic microbiota in humans needed investigation.

Aim of the study

The present study aimed to determine the effect of LKFibre on human intestinal microbiota by quantitative fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis.

Design

A total of 18 free-living healthy males between the ages of 24 and 64 years consumed a control diet and a LKFibre diet (containing an additional 17–30 g/day fiber beyond that of the control—incorporated into daily food items) for 28 days with a 28-day washout period in a single-blind, randomized, crossover dietary intervention design.

Methods

Fecal samples were collected for 3 days towards the end of each diet and microbial populations analyzed by FISH analysis using 16S rRNA gene-based oligonucleotide probes targeting total and predominant microbial populations.

Results

Significantly higher levels of Bifidobacterium spp. (P = 0.001) and significantly lower levels of the clostridia group of C. ramosum, C. spiroforme and C. cocleatum (P = 0.039) were observed on the LKFibre diet compared with the control. No significant differences between the LKFibre and the control diet were observed for total bacteria, Lactobacillus spp., the Eubacterium spp., the C. histolyticum/C. lituseburense group and the Bacteroides–Prevotella group.

Conclusions

Ingestion of LKFibre stimulated colonic bifidobacteria growth, which suggests that this dietary fiber may be considered as a prebiotic and may beneficially contribute to colon health.

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Acknowledgements

The dietary study was supported by the Grains Research and Development Corporation, the Australian Research Council—Strategic Partnerships with Industry—Research and Training Scheme, the Department of Agriculture Western Australia and Deakin University. The authors are grateful to Food Science Australia for manufacturing the LKFibre, to George Weston Foods for manufacturing the experimental food products and conducting nutritional analyses of these foods and to the study participants for their commitment to the study protocol. The authors also express their thanks to M. Ball for advice on the dietary design, Ms Amynta Baxter and Ms Veronica Chua for their assistance with some parts of this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, VIC, Australia

    Stuart C. Smith PhD, Rachel Choy BSc Hons, Stuart K. Johnson PhD & Ramon S. Hall PhD

  2. Dept. of Medical Microbiology, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands

    Alida C.M. Wildeboer-Veloo MSc & Gjalt W. Welling PhD

Authors
  1. Stuart C. Smith PhD
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  2. Rachel Choy BSc Hons
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  3. Stuart K. Johnson PhD
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  4. Ramon S. Hall PhD
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  5. Alida C.M. Wildeboer-Veloo MSc
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  6. Gjalt W. Welling PhD
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Correspondence to Stuart C. Smith PhD.

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Smith, S.C., Choy, R., Johnson, S.K. et al. Lupin kernel fiber consumption modifies fecal microbiota in healthy men as determined by rRNA gene fluorescent in situ hybridization. Eur J Nutr 45, 335–341 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-006-0603-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-006-0603-1

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