Determination the limit of postprandial blood glucose increase and the metabolism of acetylated wheat starch on healthy mice

Abstract

Introduction: Nowadays, resistant starches are interested as a supplement food by effecting on the limit of postprandial blood glucose increase and supporting for the diabetes treatment. Recently, we have semisynthesized the acetylated wheat starch (AWS) oriented for supporting the treatment of diabetes mellitus, which is the RS4 formed by chemical structure modification. AWS has been proved itself to show strong resistance to amylase activity in-vitro as well as to be safety in-vivo. Materials and Methods: In this study, we continued to evaluate AWS’s ability to limit postprandial blood glucose increase and determined shortchain fatty acids (SCFAs) metabolized from AWS in the gastrointestinal tract of healthy mice by HPLC. Results: the mice fed AWS exhibited a very limited increase in blood glucose levels and remained stable for 2 hours after meals comparing with the control group (mice fed natural wheat starch) (NWS). Simultaneously, the content of SCFAs produced in the caecum of the mice fed AWS was significantly higher than mice fed NWS, especially with acetic and propionic acids by 28% and 26%, respectively. Conclusion: AWS has been shown to limit postprandial hyperglycemia in mice effectively through the resistance to amylase hydrolysis in the small intestine. When going into the caecum, it is fermented to form SCFAs that provide a part of the energy for the body’s activities and to avoid rotten fermentation causing digestive disorders, which are inherent restrictions of normal high cellulose and fiber food. Key words: acetylated wheat starch, natural wheat starch, SCFA, blood glucose