Composition for promoting carbohydrate or lipid metabolism

Abstract

To provide a technique utilizing a new function of isomaltose.SOLUTION: The composition for promoting sugar or lipid metabolism contains isomaltose.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present specification relates to a composition for promoting carbohydrate or lipid metabolism. [Background technology]

[0002] Isomaltose is a disaccharide formed by the α-1,6-bonding of two glucose units, and is found in large amounts in amazake. Isomaltose is also a component of isomaltooligosaccharides, which contain α-1,6-bonds of glucose. Isomaltooligosaccharides are known to have the effect of regulating the intestinal environment by acting on intestinal bacteria. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-178685 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the effect of isomaltose alone has not been clarified.

[0005] The present specification provides a technology that utilizes the hitherto unknown functionality of isomaltose for mammals, including humans. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The present inventors focused on isomaltose and administered it to mice to evaluate the effects of energy metabolism. As a result, they unexpectedly confirmed the effects of suppressing body weight gain, improving glucose tolerance and insulin resistance, and suppressing the accumulation of stored fat and liver fat. Based on these findings, the disclosure of this specification provides the following means.

[0007] [1] A composition for promoting carbohydrate or lipid metabolism, containing isomaltose. [2] An anti-obesity composition containing isomaltose. [3] A composition for improving glucose tolerance or insulin resistance, containing isomaltose. [4] A composition for inhibiting fat accumulation, containing isomaltose. [5] An agent for promoting carbohydrate or lipid metabolism, containing isomaltose as an active ingredient. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 shows changes in body weight and intake in mice. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 shows the results of a glucose tolerance test and an insulin tolerance test. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 shows blood glucose levels, insulin concentrations and insulin resistance index. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 shows the results of measuring white adipose tissue weight. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 shows the results of measuring liver weight and liver fat. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] The present disclosure relates to a composition for promoting carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, containing isomaltose (6-O-α-D-glucopyranosyl-D-glucose). The composition disclosed herein (hereinafter also referred to simply as the present composition) can suppress obesity, improve glucose tolerance, ameliorate insulin resistance, and suppress the accumulation of stored fat and visceral fat, for example, by orally ingesting isomaltose. Therefore, by continuously ingesting the present composition, metabolism of carbohydrates and lipids resulting from diet and lifestyle habits can be promoted, and the above-mentioned effects can be achieved.

[0010] The composition will now be described in detail.

[0011] Isomaltose is a disaccharide formed by the α-1,6 bond of glucose. Isomaltose cannot be cleaved by enzymes found in humans. Therefore, although it may be metabolized by intestinal bacteria, it is not metabolized by humans themselves. Isomaltose has a sweetness level that is about 40% that of sucrose.

[0012] Isomaltose is known as a sugar contained in amazake (sweet sake). It can be obtained as a product or purified product of glucose reverse synthesis by glucoamylase, glucose transfer by α-glucosidase, and partial hydrolysis of dextran and amylopectin, which contain a large amount of α-1,6 bonds. It can also be obtained by purifying amazake, a fermentation product of rice koji.

[0013] Isomaltose does not need to be highly purified. For example, the present composition may contain, in addition to isomaltose, isomaltooligosaccharides other than isomaltose or other saccharides.

[0014] (Promotes carbohydrate or lipid metabolism) As used herein, carbohydrates refer to carbohydrates that are metabolized in mammals, including humans (hereinafter also referred to as humans, etc.). Typically, carbohydrates are those obtained by removing dietary fiber, which is indigestible in humans, from carbohydrates. Carbohydrates include sugars, including monosaccharides, disaccharides, and oligosaccharides, polysaccharides, and sugar alcohols. In the human body, examples of carbohydrates include glucose.

[0015] In addition, as used herein, lipids refer to lipids metabolized in humans and the like. Lipids generally include simple lipids, complex lipids, and derived lipids. In the human body, lipids refer to simple lipids such as neutral fats such as triglycerides, complex lipids such as glycerophospholipids, glyceroglycolipids, sphingophospholipids, and sphingoglycolipids, complex lipids such as plasma lipoproteins and lipoproteins in cell membranes, including high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-cholesterol), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-cholesterol), and remnant-like lipoprotein cholesterol, as well as derived lipids such as saturated fatty acids such as stearic acid and palmitic acid, unsaturated fatty acids such as α-linoleic acid and α-linolenic acid, free fatty acids including polyunsaturated fatty acids, fatty alcohols, steroids, and cholesterol.

[0016] The present composition can promote the metabolism of carbohydrates and / or lipids orally ingested as part of a diet in, for example, humans, etc. Promotion of carbohydrate and / or lipid metabolism can be manifested, for example, in humans, etc. as obesity suppression (anti-obesity), improvement of glucose tolerance, improvement of insulin resistance, and suppression of fat accumulation.

[0017] (Anti-obesity composition) The present composition can be used, for example, for anti-obesity purposes. Oral ingestion or administration of the present composition to humans or the like can suppress weight gain, even in cases where a high level of fat intake has occurred from diet. The anti-obesity effect of the present composition is sufficient if it can suppress weight gain (including maintaining weight), and preferably suppresses so-called obesity.

[0018] In this specification, obesity in humans refers to a state in which the body mass index (BMI), calculated by dividing body weight (kg) by height (m) twice, is equal to or higher than the upper healthy limit of 25, according to the criteria of the Japan Society for the Study of Obesity. Even if the BMI is less than 25, if the amount of lipids in specific sites in the subcutaneous tissue or internal organs is higher than that of a healthy individual, or if the individual is diagnosed with metabolic syndrome, the condition is considered obese.

[0019] (Composition for improving glucose tolerance or insulin resistance) The present composition can also be used, for example, as a composition for improving glucose tolerance or insulin resistance. The present composition may improve both glucose tolerance and insulin resistance. Oral ingestion or administration of the present composition to humans or the like can improve glucose tolerance and / or insulin resistance, even in cases where, for example, a high level of dietary fat intake has been observed, where weight is increasing, or where obesity is present. Examples of improved glucose tolerance include an improvement (reduction) in fasting blood glucose, an improvement (reduction) in blood glycated hemoglobin levels, an improvement (reduction) in blood HbA1c levels, and a decrease in the area under the blood glucose curve in a glucose tolerance test. Examples of improved insulin resistance include a decrease in the area under the blood glucose curve in an insulin tolerance test, an improvement (reduction) in blood insulin concentration, and an improvement (reduction) in the insulin resistance index.

[0020] The present composition contains isomaltose at a preferred concentration depending on the product form, etc. The present composition contains, but is not particularly limited to, for example, 1% by mass or more, 2% by mass or more, 3% by mass or more, 4% by mass or more, 5% by mass or more, 10% by mass or more, 20% by mass or more, 30% by mass or more, 40% by mass or more, 50% by mass or more, 60% by mass or more, or 70% by mass or more of isomaltose.

[0021] (Composition for suppressing fat accumulation) The present composition can also be used, for example, as a composition for inhibiting fat accumulation. The present composition may be any of subcutaneous fat, visceral fat (mainly white fat), and fat in the liver (neutral fat), or a combination thereof. By orally ingesting or administering the present composition to humans, etc., fat accumulation can be inhibited, for example, in cases where there is a high level of fat intake from diet, where weight is increasing, or where the patient is obese. The inhibition of fat accumulation is not particularly limited, but examples include measuring abdominal circumference, observing subcutaneous and visceral fat by imaging, etc., observing visceral fat mass, and improving (reducing) fatty liver indicators in imaging tests, blood tests, etc.

[0022] The present composition, which has the above-mentioned effects, can take various forms, such as medicines, quasi-drugs, health foods, foods and drinks, feeds, and so on.

[0023] The isomaltose contained in the composition has a sweetness that is about 40% that of sucrose, which may be advantageous in terms of flavor in the various forms described above. Furthermore, the composition improves glucose tolerance and / or insulin resistance, and may simultaneously reduce the adverse effects of various monosaccharides and disaccharides, such as glucose, on the body.

[0024] The present composition, whether a drug or quasi-drug, can be in the form of a known formulation together with various pharmaceutically acceptable additives. The formulation is typically an oral formulation or a parenteral formulation such as for tube administration, and includes, but is not limited to, capsules, powders, granules, tablets such as orally disintegrating tablets, chewable tablets, and dissolving tablets, oral tablets such as gums, sublingual tablets, and lozenges, and liquid formulations.

[0025] The present composition is a health food, and in the case of a supplement, it can take the form of various oral preparations that can be orally ingested, similar to pharmaceuticals, etc. In the case of a health food that is a functional food, a nutrient-functional food, or a food for specified health uses, it can take the form of a supplement or a specific food or drink, respectively.

[0026] In the case of a food or beverage, the present composition can take the form of a food or beverage, as well as a sweetener or seasoning. It can also take the form of a food or beverage. Food and beverages also include parenteral enteral nutritional foods. The present composition can also take the form of a feed or foodstuff for mammals other than humans.

[0027] The present composition is ingested or administered orally or enterally within a range that allows isomaltose to achieve the effect of promoting carbohydrate or lipid metabolism. The daily intake or administration amount is not particularly limited. For example, for an adult, isomaltose can be ingested or administered in a range of 0.5 g to 100 g, 2 g to 50 g, 3 g to 10 g, or 4 g to 8 g per day, but this amount can be increased or decreased as appropriate depending on age and circumstances. The present composition may be preferably ingested or administered before or with meals. For example, ingestion or administration in the morning may be preferred. More specifically, it may be preferably ingested or administered once a day, before breakfast or with breakfast. Furthermore, to achieve the effect of promoting carbohydrate or lipid metabolism, the present composition is preferably ingested or administered continuously. Typically, the effect is more easily achieved by continuous ingestion or administration for, for example, 3 weeks or more, or 4 weeks or more.

[0028] The present composition contains isomaltose as an active ingredient, and isomaltose itself is useful as a carbohydrate or lipid metabolism promoter. Therefore, without being formulated into a composition, isomaltose itself can be used as an anti-obesity agent, glucose tolerance improving agent, insulin resistance improving agent, or fat accumulation inhibitor, including promoting carbohydrate or lipid metabolism. Isomaltose can be used as a raw material for producing the present composition. Note that those skilled in the art can appropriately produce the present composition using isomaltose.

[0029] Furthermore, since isomaltose itself exhibits an effect of promoting carbohydrate or lipid metabolism, the ingestion or administration of isomaltose to mammals, including humans, can be carried out as a method for promoting carbohydrate or lipid metabolism, as well as a method for suppressing obesity, improving glucose tolerance, improving insulin resistance, or suppressing fat accumulation. The various forms of the present composition described above can be used as the isomaltose-containing form in such methods. Furthermore, isomaltose can be added to foods, drinks, feed, and the like as a carbohydrate or fat metabolism promoter during cooking or in meals, as appropriate. [Example]

[0030] Examples will be described below as specific examples to more specifically explain the disclosure of this specification. The following examples are intended to illustrate the disclosure of this specification, but are not intended to limit the scope thereof. [Example]

[0031] In this example, an experiment was carried out in which isomaltose was administered to mice according to the following procedure.

[0032] (Laboratory animals) Six-week-old male C57BL / 6J mice were purchased from Japan SLC Co., Ltd. and fed a normal diet (10% fat / kcal, D12450J, Research Diets) or a high-fat diet (60% fat / kcal, D12492, Research Diets). At 8 weeks of age, mice receiving the high-fat diet were divided into an obese control group (CON, n = 9) or an isomaltose-treated group (ISM, n = 8). Mice receiving the normal diet served as a healthy control group (Lean). The isomaltose-treated group received 100 mM isomaltose (150 μL saline) orally once daily, 5 days a week, for 8 weeks from 8 to 16 weeks of age. The other groups received an equal volume of saline orally in the same manner. At 16 weeks of age, all mice were subjected to autopsy. [Example]

[0033] (Weight suppression effect of isomaltose administration) For each group of mice in the administration experiment of Example 1, changes in body weight from 6 weeks to 16 weeks of age, body weight at dissection, and changes in food intake over time are shown in FIG.

[0034] As shown in Figure 1, the isomaltose-administered group had a more suppressed weight gain than the obese control group, despite the ingestion of a high-fat diet. Furthermore, the isomaltose-administered group had a lower body weight than the obese control group at the time of autopsy. The amount of high-fat diet intake was comparable between the isomaltose-administered group and the obese control group.

[0035] From the above, it was revealed that the administration of isomaltose suppressed the weight gain. [Example]

[0036] (Glucose tolerance test and insulin tolerance test) To evaluate the effect of continuous isomaltose administration on glucose tolerance, an oral glucose tolerance test was performed on each group of mice in the administration experiment of Example 1 at week 8 of administration. After a 5-hour fast, fasting blood glucose levels (0 min) were measured, and glucose (1 g / kg BW) was orally administered. Blood glucose levels were then measured 30, 60, and 120 min later. The results are shown in Figure 2.

[0037] Next, to evaluate the effect of continuous isomaltose administration on insulin resistance, an intraperitoneal insulin tolerance test was performed 4 days after the glucose tolerance test. After a 5-hour fast, fasting blood glucose levels (0 min) were measured, and insulin (0.5 U / kg BW) was injected intraperitoneally. Blood glucose levels were then measured 30, 60, and 120 min later. Blood glucose levels were measured using a self-testing glucose meter (Glutest Neo Super, Sanwa Kagaku Kenkyusho). The results are also shown in Figure 2.

[0038] As shown in Figure 2, the glucose tolerance test and insulin tolerance test showed that the isomaltose-administered group tended to have lower blood glucose levels overall, including fasting blood glucose, compared to the obese control group. From the above, it was found that the isomaltose-administered group had promoted carbohydrate metabolism throughout the body and improved glucose tolerance. [Example]

[0039] (Autopsy and biochemical examination) Three days after the insulin tolerance test and 24 hours after the final isomaltose administration, mice were fasted for 5 hours and then underwent abdominal sectioning under anesthesia. Blood was collected from the abdominal inferior vena cava, and the epididymal fat, perirenal fat, and liver were removed and weighed. Blood was collected at autopsy to measure blood glucose levels and blood insulin concentrations (both fasting) and calculate the insulin resistance index. Insulin concentrations were measured using the following method. The results are shown in Figure 3.

[0040] (Measurement of plasma insulin concentration) The blood collected at the time of autopsy was centrifuged at 3,000 rpm for 10 minutes at 4°C to collect the plasma. The insulin concentration in the plasma was measured using a commercially available insulin measurement kit (MS300, Takara Bio) according to the manual.

[0041] The excised liver was cryopreserved and used for biochemical analysis, which was performed as follows.

[0042] (Biochemical analysis: measurement of liver triglycerides) To extract lipids from the liver, a portion of the liver was excised and homogenized in 5% NP-40 solution. The homogenate was heated at 100°C for 5 minutes and cooled to room temperature twice, then centrifuged at 10,000 × g for 2 minutes to collect the supernatant. Triglycerides in the supernatant were quantified using LabAssay Triglyceride (Fujifilm Wako Pure Chemical Industries, Ltd.) according to the manufacturer's instructions.

[0043] The measurement results of the weights of the epididymal fat and perirenal fat are shown in FIG. 4, and the measurement results of the liver weight and liver triglyceride are shown in FIG.

[0044] As shown in Figure 3, the insulin resistance index was significantly lower in the isomaltose-administered group compared to the obese control group. From the above, it was found that insulin resistance was improved by the administration of isomaltose.

[0045] As shown in Figure 4, the weights of epididymal fat and perirenal fat were lower in the isomaltose-treated group than in the obese control group. Both of these fats are white fat, which are examples of stored fat, namely subcutaneous and visceral fat.

[0046] Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 5, in the isomaltose-administered group, both the liver weight and the liver triglyceride weight were significantly reduced compared to the obese control group.

[0047] From the above, it was revealed that administration of isomaltose has the effect of suppressing the accumulation of subcutaneous and visceral fat storage and liver fat.

Claims

1. A carbohydrate or lipid metabolism-promoting composition containing isomaltose.

2. An anti-obesity composition containing isomaltose.

3. A composition for improving glucose tolerance or insulin resistance, comprising isomaltose.

4. A composition for inhibiting fat accumulation, containing isomaltose.

5. An agent for promoting carbohydrate or lipid metabolism, containing isomaltose as an active ingredient.

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