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Article

Arabinoxylan Fiber from a By-Product of Wheat Flour Processing Behaves Physiologically like a Soluble, Fermentable Fiber in the Large Bowel of Rats^{1 ,2}

Zhong X. Lu^*3, Peter R. Gibson, Jane G. Muir^*, Marisa Fielding and Kerin O’Dea^*

^* Center for Population Health and Nutrition, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia 3168 and Department of Medicine, University of Melbourne, The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 3050

³To whom correspondence should be addressed.

Arabinoxylan is a major dietary fiber component of many cereals. Its physiological effects in the colon are largely unknown. This study examined the effects of an arabinoxylan-rich fiber (AX) extracted from a by-product of wheat flour processing in the rat colon compared with well-characterized soluble/rapidly fermentable and insoluble/slowly fermentable fibers. Rats were fed diets containing no fiber (NF) or 100 g/kg of total dietary fiber from AX, guar gum (GG) or wheat bran (WB) for 4 wk. Cecal mass and short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) pool were significantly higher while pH was significantly lower in the fiber-supplemented groups, particularly in the AX and GG groups. The pattern of SCFA production in the cecum was altered; AX fiber was a good source for acetate while GG and WB favored propionate and butyrate production, respectively. Fecal output was 7-, 6- and 5-fold higher, respectively, in the AX, GG and WB than in the NF groups (P < 0.01). All epithelial proliferation indices (crypt column height, number of mitotic cells/crypt column and mitotic index) differed significantly across the groups in a descending order of AX > GG > WB > NF. Distal mucosal dipeptidyl peptidase IV activities, which indicate cell differentiation status, were significantly lower in fiber-supplemented groups than in the NF groups. Distal mucosal alkaline phosphatase activities, induced as a response to injury or stress, were significantly higher for the AX and GG groups than for the NF or WB groups (P < 0.001). These results indicate that AX fiber behaves like a rapidly fermentable, soluble fiber in the rat colon.

KEY WORDS: • dietary fiber • arabinoxylan • proliferation and fermentation • distal colon • rats

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