Rapeseed polysaccharides as prebiotics on growth and acidifying activity of probiotics in vitro

In vitro digestibility, prebiotic activity and chemical composition of polysaccharides from rapeseed were deliberately studied in this paper. After preliminary treatments, two fractions of polysaccharides (RP1 and RP2) were obtained after purification by DEAE-cellulose and Sephadex G-100. Their primary structural feature and molecule weights were characterized. Furthermore, their digestibility was also evaluated by artificial gastric juice and alpha-amylase. Finally, their proliferative effect on bifidobacteria and lacto-bacilli and acid production of the resulting probiotics in vitro were investigated. The results showed that RP1 and RP2 were homogeneously protein-bound polysaccharides with molecular weights of 28.51 and 6.55 kDa, respectively. They were resistant to hydrolysis by artificial gastric juice and alpha-amylase. Moreover, they could also significantly stimulate the tested probiotics to proliferate and produce organic acids. These findings clearly suggest the polysaccharides from rapeseed are potential to be exploited as novel prebiotics. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.