Background:
Recently, it has been established that simultaneous saccharification and
fermentation is a potent technique for the detoxification of harmful plant materials.
Objective:
Following encouraging simultaneous medicinal applications of snail slime and yeast,
we exploited their hydrolytic and fermentation potentials to prevent toxicities of the selected floras;
Erythrodontium barteri (EB), bracken fern (BF), and crustose lichens (CL). The applicability
of the saccharification process has been described in a patent (WO2005010193A2).
Method:
The plants were bioprocessed using snail digestive juice and yeast slurry and their
health effects were evaluated. Seventy rats were divided equally into groups, treated with single
doses of aqueous extracts of the plants and their bioprocessed forms, and compared with control
rats.
Result:
The plants showed very high antinutrients levels, which significantly reduced after SSF
with enhanced flavonoids, alkaloids and phenols. Potential alterations of WBC differentials, RBC,
liver and renal function markers indices were mitigated by bioprocessed extracts. MDA, SOD,
GRase, XO and XDH levels in rats administered the bEB and CL were equivalent to the levels
found for the control rats. Some bioprocessed plants produced unaltered insulin, ghrelin, and leptin
levels. The bioprocessed extracts, when compared to the effects of unprocessed extracts, produced
lower TNF-α, Caspase-3, and adiponectin levels and mitigated the potential suppression of
Na+/K+-ATPase levels. Potential depletion of inhibin-B, testosterone, estrogen, and prolactin was
mitigated after bioprocessing.
Conclusion:
This study, thus, validates the application of bioprocessing using snail digestive juice
and yeast as an effective approach to reduce the potential toxicities of harmful plants.