Unrevealing the in vitro impacts of Cereus jacamaru DC. cladodes flour on potentially probiotic strains, selected bacterial populations, and metabolic activity of human intestinal microbiota

Ana Cristina Silveira Martins; Gracy Kelly Vieira de Vasconcelos Medeiros; Sônia Paula Alexandrino de Oliveira; Thatyane Mariano Rodrigues de Albuquerque; Karoliny Brito Sampaio; Marcos Dos Santos Lima; Yuri Mangueira do Nascimento; Evandro Ferreira da Silva; Josean Fechine Tavares; Marcelo Sobral da Silva; Evandro Leite de Souza; Maria Elieidy Gomes de Oliveira

doi:10.1016/j.foodres.2023.113658

Unrevealing the in vitro impacts of Cereus jacamaru DC. cladodes flour on potentially probiotic strains, selected bacterial populations, and metabolic activity of human intestinal microbiota

Food Res Int. 2023 Dec;174(Pt 2):113658. doi: 10.1016/j.foodres.2023.113658. Epub 2023 Nov 3.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Post-Graduate Program in Food Science and Technology, Department of Food Engineering, Federal University of Paraíba, João Pessoa, PB 58051-900, Brazil.
² Laboratory of Food Microbiology, Department of Nutrition, Federal University of Paraíba, João Pessoa, PB 58051-900, Brazil.
³ Department of Food Technology, Federal Institute of Sertão de Pernambuco, Petrolina, PE 56302-100, Brazil.
⁴ Institute for Research in Drugs and Medicines - IPeFarM, Federal University of Paraíba, João Pessoa, PB 58051-900, Brazil.
⁵ Laboratory of Bromatology, Department of Nutrition, Federal University of Paraíba, João Pessoa, PB 58051-900, Brazil. Electronic address: mego@academico.ufpb.br.

PMID: 37981375
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodres.2023.113658

Abstract

This study investigated the potential impacts of the flour from Cereus jamacaru cactus cladodes (CJF), a cactus native to the Brazilian Caatinga biome, on the growth and metabolism of different potentially probiotic strains, as well as on the abundance of selected intestinal bacterial populations and microbial metabolic activity during in vitro colonic fermentation with a pooled human fecal inoculum. Cultivation of the probiotics in a medium with C. jamacaru cladodes flour (20 g/L) resulted in viable cell counts of up to 9.8 log CFU/mL, positive prebiotic activity scores (0.73-0.91), decreased pH and sugar contents, and increased lactic, acetic, and propionic acid production over time, indicating enhanced probiotic growth and metabolic activity. CJF overall increased the relative abundance of Lactobacillus spp./Enterococcus spp. (2.12-3.29%) and Bifidobacterium spp. (4.08-4.32%) and decreased the relative abundance of Bacteroides spp./Prevotella spp. (8.35-6.81%), Clostridium histolyticum (6.91-3.59%), and Eubacterium rectale/Clostridium coccoides (7.70-3.95%) during 48 h of an in vitro colonic fermentation using a pooled human fecal inoculum. CJF stimulated the microbial metabolic activity, with decreased pH, sugar consumption, lactic and short-chain fatty acid production, alterations in overall metabolic profiling and phenolic compound contents, and maintenance of high antioxidant capacity during colonic fermentation. These results show that CJF stimulated the growth and metabolic activity of distinct potential probiotics, increased the relative abundance of beneficial intestinal bacterial groups, and stimulated microbial metabolism during in vitro colonic fermentation. Further studies using advanced molecular technologies and in vivo experimental models could forward the investigation of the potential prebiotic properties of CJF.

Keywords: Cactaceae; Colonic fermentation; Gut microbiota; Lactobacillus; Mandacaru; Prebiotic.

MeSH terms

Cactaceae*
Fermentation
Flour
Gastrointestinal Microbiome*
Humans
Metabolomics