In vitro digestion of Atractylodes macrocephala polysaccharide and fermentation of human intestinal flora as affected by bran frying

Han He; Shiru Huang; Chengxin Yu; Qiaozhen Wang; Youping Liu; Lin Chen; Yuan Hu; Fu Wang; Hongping Chen

doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.145913

In vitro digestion of Atractylodes macrocephala polysaccharide and fermentation of human intestinal flora as affected by bran frying

Int J Biol Macromol. 2025 Jul 11:145913. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.145913. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Han He¹, Shiru Huang¹, Chengxin Yu¹, Qiaozhen Wang¹, Youping Liu¹, Lin Chen¹, Yuan Hu¹, Fu Wang¹, Hongping Chen²

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Southwestern Chinese Medicine Resources, Department of Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No.1166, Liutai Avenue, Chengdu 611137, Sichuan, China.
² State Key Laboratory of Southwestern Chinese Medicine Resources, Department of Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No.1166, Liutai Avenue, Chengdu 611137, Sichuan, China. Electronic address: chen_hongping@126.com.

PMID: 40653238
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.145913

Abstract

Atractylodis macrocephalae Rhizoma (AM) is a medical-food homologous medicinal material with the polysaccharides as its main functional components. Bran stir-frying is a common processing method. Traditional Chinese medicine theory holds that bran stir-frying can enhance the therapeutic effect of AM, but the substantive role is not fully clear. This study aims to compare the structures and the prebiotic characteristics of AMP before and after bran-frying. The results showed that the glycosidic bonds of AMP mainly included (4 → 1)-Glcp, (2 → 1)-Galp and (3 → 1)-Glcp. The molecular weight increased, the content of glucuronic acid elevated and the composition of monosaccharides changed after bran stir-frying. The pH, C_R and total sugar concentration of BFAMP decreased significantly, while the contents of reducing sugar and SCFAs increased during digestive fermentation. In addition, intestinal flora analysis and strain verification experiments showed that BFAMP had a significant inhibitory effect on Shigella dysenteriae and a significant promotion effect on Prevotella. In summary, our study finds that the structure of AMP changes after bran stir-frying and BFAMP exhibits a good probiotic properties by promoting Prevotella and inhibiting Shigella dysenteriae. It provides a reference for the development of BFAMP as a new type of prebiotic in the functional food industry.

Keywords: Atractylodes macrocephala polysaccharide; Digestive fermentation; Intestinal flora.