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The effects of ispaghula on rat caecal fermentation and stool output

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2007

Christine A. Edwards ,
Jacqueline Bowen ,
W. Gordon Brydon  and
Martin A. Eastwood
Christine A. Edwards
Affiliation:
Gastrointestinal Laboratory, University of Edinburgh, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh EH4 2XU
Jacqueline Bowen
Affiliation:
Gastrointestinal Laboratory, University of Edinburgh, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh EH4 2XU
W. Gordon Brydon
Affiliation:
Gastrointestinal Laboratory, University of Edinburgh, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh EH4 2XU
Martin A. Eastwood
Affiliation:
Gastrointestinal Laboratory, University of Edinburgh, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh EH4 2XU
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Abstract

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The colonic fermentation of ispaghula, a mucilage from Plantago ovata composed mainly of arabinoxylans, and its effects on stool output and caecal metabolism were investigated. Four groups of eight rats were fed on a basal diet (45 g non-starch polysaccharides/kg) for 28 d. The diet was then supplemented with ispaghula (g/kg; 0, 5, 15 or 50) for 28 d. Ispaghula increased stool dry weight and apparent wet weight but faecal water-holding capacity (amount of water held per g dry faecal material at 0.2 mPa) was unchanged. The extent of faecal drying in the metabolism cages was measured for rats fed on the basal diet and 50 g ispaghula/kg diet. At the faecal output levels encountered, only an 8% loss of wet weight would be predicted over 24 h and this was independent of diet. Faecal short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) concentration did not change but SCFA output increased. The molar proportion of SCFA as propionic acid increased and faecal pH was reduced. Values from pooled faecal samples suggested that approximately 50% of the ingested ispaghula was excreted by the 50 g ispaghula/kg diet group. Diaminopimelic acid (a constituent of bacterial cells) concentrations fell but output was unchanged indicating no change in bacterial mass. Similar changes were seen in the caecal contents but caecal pH and SCFA were unaffected. Ispaghula increased both caecal and colonic tissue wet weight and colonic length. Our results suggest that ispaghula is partly fermented in the rat caecum and colon, and loses its water-holding capacity. However, it is still an effective stool bulker and acts mainly by increasing faecal water by some unknown mechanism

Keywords

IspaghulaPlantago ovataCaecal fermentationstool bulking
Type
Nutritional Effects of Complex Carbohydrates
Information
British Journal of Nutrition , Volume 68 , Issue 2 , September 1992 , pp. 473 - 482
Copyright
Copyright © The Nutrition Society 1992

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