Malt in Combination with Lactobacillus rhamnosus Increases Concentrations of Butyric Acid in the Distal Colon and Serum in Rats Compared with Other Barley Products but Decreases Viable Counts of Cecal Bifidobacteria123

Several substances, including glutamine and propionic acid but in particular butyric acid, have been proposed to be important for colonic health. β-Glucans lead to the formation of comparatively high amounts of butyric acid, and germinated barley foodstuff obtained from brewer’s spent grain (BSG), containing high amounts of β-glucans and glutamine, has been reported to reduce the inflammatory response in the colon of patients with ulcerative colitis. The present study examines how 3 barley products, whole grain barley, malt, and BSG, affect SCFA in the hindgut and serum of rats and whether the addition of Lactobacillus rhamnosus 271 to each of these diets would have further effects. Amino acids in plasma and the cecal composition of the microbiota were also analyzed. The butyric acid concentration in the distal colon and serum was higher in the malt groups than in the other groups as was the serum concentration of propionic acid. The concentrations of propionic and butyric acids were higher in the cecum and serum of rats given L. rhamnosus than in those not given this strain. The proportion of plasma glutamine and the cecal number of bifidobacteria were lower in the malt groups than in the other groups. L. rhamnosus decreased the number of cecal bifidobacteria, whereas plasma glutamine was unaffected. We conclude that malt together with L. rhamnosus 271 had greater effects on propionic and butyric acid concentrations in rats than the other barley products. This is interesting when developing food with effects on colonic health

Effect of onion and beet on plasma and liver lipids, platelet aggregation, and erythrocyte Na efflux in simvastatin treated hypercholesterolmic rats

This study was purposed to investigate the effect of onion or beet on plasma and liver lipids, erythrocyte Na efflux channels and platelet aggregation in simvastatin (SIM) treated hypercholesterolemic rats. Forty Sprague Dawley rats were divided into four groups and fed 0.5% cholesterol based diets containing 2 mg/kg BW simvastatin or simvastatin with 5% onion or beet powder. Plasma total cholesterol was significantly increased in SIM group compared with the control (p<0.01), and the elevated plasma total cholesterol of SIM group was significantly decreased in SIM-onion and SIM-beet groups (p<0.05). HDL-cholesterol in SIM-beet group was significantly increased compared with other groups (p<0.05). Platelet aggregation in both the maximum and initial slope was significantly decreased in SIM group compared with SIM-onion group (p<0.05). Na-K ATPase was significantly decreased in SIM group compared with the control, SIM-onion and SIM-beet groups (p<0.05). Na passive leak was significantly increased in all groups treated with SIM compared with the control (p<0.05). The total Na efflux was decreased in SIM group and increased in SIM-onion group and the difference between these two groups was significant (p<0.05). There was no difference in intracellular Na among groups. In present study, simvastatin, a HMG CoA reductase inhibitor at dose of 2mg/kg BW/day rather increased plasma total cholesterol in rats, inferring that the action mechanism of simvastatin on cholesterol metabolism differ between rat and human. Onion and beet play favorable roles in cardiovascular system by restoring the reduced Na efflux through Na-K ATPase and Na-K cotransport in SIM treated rats