Pea Fibre and Bifidobacterium Longum for Better Gut Fermentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Insoluble complex dietary fibres have poor fermentability in the human gut, leading to reduced beneficial physiological impact and can cause gastrointestinal discomfort due to fast fermentation rates, while soluble non-digestible oligosaccharides used to increase fibre content cause discomfort and are perceived as unnatural.
Innovation Solution
Combining a complex dietary fibre, particularly from pea, with the probiotic Bifidobacterium longum NCC 3001, improves fermentability and reduces gas production, enhancing short-chain fatty acid production, including acetate and propionate, which have positive effects on host health without causing discomfort.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If insoluble complex dietary fibres are used to increase dietary fibre content, then fibre content is improved, but fermentability is poor and gastrointestinal discomfort occurs
Solution Approach 1:
A soluble prebiotic oligosaccharide acts as an intermediary substance that facilitates the fermentation of insoluble complex dietary fibres by serving as a readily fermentable substrate for gut microbiota, thereby improving overall fibre fermentability without causing gastrointestinal discomfort
Solution Approach 2:
The invention creates a composite fibre composition combining insoluble complex dietary fibres with soluble prebiotic oligosaccharides, where the soluble component enhances the fermentability of the insoluble component, achieving synergistic effects that resolve the contradiction between fibre content and fermentability
2Quantity of substance
If soluble non-digestible oligosaccharides are used to increase dietary fibre content, then fibre content is improved, but fast fermentation rate causes gastrointestinal discomfort
Solution Approach 1:
The invention modifies the fermentation kinetics by combining fast-fermenting soluble oligosaccharides with slow-fermenting insoluble fibres, creating a balanced fermentation profile that maintains adequate fibre content while avoiding excessive gas production and gastrointestinal discomfort through controlled fermentation rates
3Stability of the object's composition
If insoluble complex dietary fibres are used, then fibre structure is maintained, but beneficial physiological impact is reduced due to poor fermentability
Solution Approach 1:
The soluble prebiotic oligosaccharide serves as a mediator that bridges the structural integrity of insoluble fibres with their functional benefit, providing an alternative fermentable substrate that enables beneficial physiological effects through short-chain fatty acid production while the insoluble fibre maintains its structural role in the diet
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The fibre-probiotic combination enhances fermentability, reduces gas formation, and increases beneficial short-chain fatty acid production, improving immune regulation and protection against colonic cancer, while maintaining gut health.
Implementation Method 1
The combination of a complex dietary fibre from pea with a probiotic, particularly Bifidobacterium longum NCC 3001, results in a surprising improvement in fermentability of the fibre
Implementation Method 2
fermentation of the fiber by the commensal microbes found in the gut also leads to an increased production of short chain fatty acids
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a Bifidobacterium longum probiotic for use to improve fermentability of a plant fibre during gastro-intestinal tract passage in a subject, wherein said plant fibre has an insoluble fraction of between 40 to 80% (w/w).