Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-t5tsf Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T20:13:13.821Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Soluble polysaccharide and biomass of red microalga Porphyridium sp. alter intestinal morphology and reduce serum cholesterol in rats

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2007

Irit Dvir ,
Reuven Chayoth ,
Uriel Sod-Moriah ,
Shraga Shany ,
Abraham Nyska ,
Aliza H. Stark ,
Zecharia Madar  and
Shoshana Malis Arad
Irit Dvir
Affiliation:
The Institute for Applied Biosciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
Reuven Chayoth
Affiliation:
Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
Uriel Sod-Moriah
Affiliation:
Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
Shraga Shany
Affiliation:
Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Clinical Biochemistry Unit, and Soroka University Hospital of Kupat-Holim, Toor Institute, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
Abraham Nyska
Affiliation:
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA
Aliza H. Stark
Affiliation:
Faculty of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Quality Sciences, Institute of Biochemistry, Food Sciences and Nutrition, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, PO Box 12, Rehovot 76100, Israel
Zecharia Madar*
Affiliation:
Faculty of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Quality Sciences, Institute of Biochemistry, Food Sciences and Nutrition, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, PO Box 12, Rehovot 76100, Israel
Shoshana Malis Arad
Affiliation:
The Institute for Applied Biosciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
*
*Corresponding author: Professor Zecharia Madar, present address Faculty of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Quality Sciences, Institute of Biochemistry, Food Sciences and Nutrition, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot 76100, Israel, fax +972 8 9363208, email madar@agri.huji.ac.il
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

The present study investigated the effects of the red microalga Porphyridium sp. on gastrointestinal physiology and lipid metabolism in male Sprague-Dawley rats. Diets containing dietary fibre from pelleted red microalgal cells (biomass) or their sulfated polysaccharide, pectin or cellulose (control) were fed to rats for a period of 30 d. All three fibre-supplemented diets increased the length of both the small intestine and colon, with a significantly greater effect in rats fed the algal polysaccharide. The polysaccharide also increased mucosa and muscularis cross-sectional area of the jejunum, and caused hypertrophy in the muscularis layer. The algal biomass significantly lowered gastrointestinal transit time by 44 % in comparison with the control rats. Serum and mucosal cholecystokinin levels were lower in rats on the pectin and polysaccharide diets, while cholecystokinin levels in rats fed algal biomass were not different from those in the control animals. In comparison with the control diet, all the experimental diets significantly lowered serum cholesterol levels (22–29 %). Feeding of non-fermentable algal polysaccharide or biomass significantly increased faecal weight and bile acid excretion compared with pectin-fed or control rats. The algal polysaccharide and biomass were thus shown to be potent hypocholesterolaemic agents active at low concentrations in the diet. Both metabolic and morphological changes were observed following consumption of algae, suggesting several possible mechanisms by which the alga affects lipid metabolism. The results presented in the present study encourage the use of red microalga as a functional food.

Keywords

Dietary fibreRed microalgaCholesterolImage analysis
Type
Research Article
Information
British Journal of Nutrition , Volume 84 , Issue 4 , October 2000 , pp. 469 - 476
Copyright
Copyright © The Nutrition Society 2000

References

Allain, CC, Poon, LS, Chan, CSG, Richmond, W and Fu, PC (1974) Enzymatic determination of total serum cholesterol. Clinical Chemistry 20, 470–475.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
American Institute of Nutrition (1977) Report of the American Institute of Nutrition. ad hoc committee on standards for nutritional studies. Journal of Nutrition 107, 1340–1348.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
American Institute of Nutrition (1980) Second report of the ad hoc committee on standards for nutritional studies. Journal of Nutrition 110, 1726.Google Scholar
Anderson, JW, Jones, AE and Riddell-Mason, S (1994) Ten different dietary fibers have significantly different effect on serum and liver lipids of cholesterol-fed rats. Journal of Nutrition 124, 78–83.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bajpai, P and Bajpai, P (1993) Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) production from microorganisms: a review. Biotechnology 30, 161–183.Google ScholarPubMed
Bradford, MM (1976) A rapid and sensitive method for the quantitation of microgram quantities of protein utilizing the principle of protein–dye binding. Analytical Biochemistry 72, 248–256.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Brown, NJ, Worlding, J, Rumsey, RDE and Read, NW (1979) Active and inactive forms of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase in the liver of the rat. Journal of Biological Chemistry 254, 5144–5149.Google Scholar
Cassidy, MM, Lightfoot, FG, Grau, LE, Story, JA, Kritchevsky, D and Vahouny, GV (1981) Effect of chronic intake of dietary fibers on the ultrastructural topography of rat jejunum and colon: a scanning electron microscope study. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 34, 218–228.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chen, WL, Anderson, JW and Jennings, D (1984) Propionate may mediate the hypocholesterolemic effects of certain soluble plant fibers in cholesterol fed rats. Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine 175, 215–218.Google Scholar
Cheville, NF (1994) Pathologic cell growth. In Ultrastructural Pathology. An Introduction and Interpretation. 193–228. [Cheville, NF editor]. Ames,IA: Iowa State University Press.Google Scholar
Cohen, E and Malis Arad, S (1989) A closed system for outdoor cultivation of. Porphyridium. Biomass 18, 59–67.Google Scholar
Davidson, MH and McDonald, A (1998) Fiber: forms and function. Nutritional Research 18, 617–624.Google Scholar
Eastwood, MA and Morris, ER (1992) Physical properties of dietary fiber that influence physiological function: a model for polymers among the gastrointestinal tract. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 55, 436–442.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fabregas, J and Herrero, C (1990) Vitamin content of four marine microalgae potential use as source of vitamins in nutrition. Industrial Microbiology 5, 259–264.Google Scholar
Folch, J, Lees, M and Sloan-Stanley, GH (1957) A simple method for the isolation and purification of total lipids from animal tissues. Journal of Biological Chemistry 226, 497–509.Google Scholar
Fossati, P and Prencipe, L (1982) Serum triglycerides determined colorimetrically with an enzyme that produces hydrogen peroxide. Clinical Chemistry 28, 2077–2080.Google Scholar
Gallaher, DD, Hassel, CA, Lee, K and Gallaher, CM (1993) Viscosity and fermentability as attributes of dietary fiber responsible for the hypocholesterolemic effect in hamsters. Journal of Nutrition 123, 244–252.Google Scholar
Geresh, S and Malis, Arad S (1991) The extracellular polysaccharide of red microalgae: chemistry and rheology. Bioresource Technology 38, 195–201.Google Scholar
Glore, SR, Van Treeck, D, Knehans, AW and Guild, M (1994) Soluble fiber and serum lipids: a literature review. Journal of the American Dietetic Association 94, 425–436.Google Scholar
Grider, JR (1994) Role of cholecystokinin in the regulation of gastrointestinal motility. Journal of Nutrition 124, 1334S–1339S.Google Scholar
Jacobs, LR (1983) Effects of dietary fiber on the mucosal growth and cell proliferation in the small intestine of the rat: a comparison of oat bran, pectin, and guar with total fiber deprivation. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 37, 954–960.Google Scholar
Jones, TM, Anderson, AJ and Albersheim, P (1963) Studies on the growth of the red alga. Porphyridium cruentum. Plant Physiology 16, 636–643.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Judd, PA and Truswell, AS (1985) The hypocholesterolemic effect of pectin in rats. British Journal of Nutrition 53, 409–425.Google Scholar
Kishimoto, Y, Shigeru, W and Hidetoshi, T (1995) Hypocholesterolemic effect of dietary fiber: relation to intestinal fermentation and bile acid excretion. Journal of Nutritional Science and Vitaminology 41, 151–161.Google Scholar
Lahaye, M (1991) Marine algae as sources of fibers: Determination of soluble and insoluble dietary fiber contents in some 'sea vegetables'. Journal of Food Science and Agriculture 54, 587–594.Google Scholar
Lahaye, M and Jegou, D (1993) Chemical and physical-chemical characteristics of dietary fibers from Ulva lactuca (L.) Thuret and. Enteromorpha compressa (L.) Grev. Journal of Applied Physiology 5, 195–200.Google Scholar
Lairon, D (1996) Dietary fibres: effects on lipid metabolism and mechanisms of action. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 50, 125–133.Google ScholarPubMed
Lopes-Virella, MF, Stone, P, Ellis, S and Colwella, JA (1977) Cholesterol determination in high-density lipoproteins separated by three different methods. Clinical Chemistry 23, 882–884.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lopez-Alonso, D, Molina-Grima, E, Sanchez-Perez, JA, Garcia-Sanchez, JL and Garcia-Camacho, F (1992) Isolation of clones of Isochrysis galbana rich in eicosapentaenoic acid. Aquaculture 102, 363–371.Google Scholar
Mabeau, S and Fleurance, J (1993) Seaweed in food products: biochemical and nutritional aspects. Trends in Food Science and Technology 4, 103–107.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Malis, Arad S, (1988) Production of polysaccharides from red unicellular algae. In Algal Biotechnology. 65–87.[Stadler, T, Mollion, J, Verdus, MD, Karamanos, Y, Morvan, H and Christiaen, D editors].London: Elsevier Applied Science.Google Scholar
Nagengast, FM, (1992) Dietary fiber and bile acid metabolism. In Dietary fiber – A Component of Food, Nutritional Function in Health and Disease, 217–231.[Schweizer, TF and Edwards, CA editors].London: Springer-verlag.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nuutila, AM, Aura, AM, Kiesvaara, M and Kauppienen, V (1997) The effect of salinity, nitrate concentration, pH and temperature on eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) production by red unicellular alga. Porphyridium purpureum. Biotechnology 55, 55–63.Google Scholar
Prosky, L, Asp, N, Schweizer, TF, DeVries, JW and Furda, I (1988) Determination of insoluble, soluble and total dietary fiber in food and food products: Interlaboratory study. Journal of the Association of Official Analytical Chemists 71, 1017–1023.Google Scholar
Read, NW, Eastwood, MA, (1992) Gastro-intestinal physiology and function. In Dietary fiber – A Component of Food, Nutritional Function in Health and Disease. 103–117.[Schweizer, TF and Edwards, CA editors].London: Springer-verlag.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Saito, T, Hayakawa, T, Nakamura, K, Takita, T, Suzuki, K and Innami, S (1991) Fecal output, gastrointestinal transit time, frequency of evacuation and apparent excretion rate of dietary fiber in young men given diets containing different levels of dietary fiber. Journal of Nutritional Science and Vitaminology 37, 493–508.Google Scholar
Schneeman, BO and Richter, D (1993) Changes in plasma and hepatic lipids, small intestinal histology and pancreatic enzyme activity due to aging and dietary fiber in rats. Journal of Nutrition 123, 1328–1337.Google Scholar
Searcy, RL and Bergquist, LM (1960) A new color reaction for quantitation of serum cholesterol. Clinica Chimica Acta 5, 192–199.Google Scholar
Sheltawy, MJ and Losowsky, MS (1975) Determination of fecal bile acids by an enzymatic method. Clinica Chimica Acta 64, 127–132.Google Scholar
Slavin, G, Sowter, C, Robertson, K, Mcdermott, S and Paton, K (1980) Measurement in jejunal biopsies by computer-aided microscopy. Journal of Clinical Pathology 33, 254–261.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Southgate, DAT, (1990) Dietary fiber and health. In Dietary Fiber: Chemical and Biological Aspects. 10–19.[Southgate, DAT, Waldron, K, Johnson, IT and Fenwick, GR editors].Cambridge: The Royal Society of Chemistry.Google Scholar
Stark, A, Nyska, A and Madar, Z (1996) Metabolic and morphometric changes in small and large intestine in rats fed high-fiber diets. Toxicologic Pathology 24, 166–171.Google Scholar
Topping, DL, Ilman, RJ, Dowling, K, Trimble, RP (1990) Mechanisms whereby fibre could lower plasma cholesterol. In Dietary Fiber: Chemical and Biological Aspects. 300–304.[Southgate, DAT, aldron, KW, Johnson, IT and Fenwick, GR editors].Cambridge: The Royal Society of Chemistry.Google Scholar
Vahouny, GV, Cassidy, MM, (1986) Dietary fiber and intestinal adaptation. In Dietary Fiber – Basic and Clinical Aspects. 253–264.[Vahouny, GV and Kritchevsky, D editors]. New York: Plenum Press.Google Scholar