The effect of sodium carboxymethyl starch with high degree of substitution on defecation

Sodium carboxymethyl starch (CMS-Na), a kind of food additive with high degree of substitution, is also known as a prebiotic. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of CMS-Na on defecation. Constipated mouse model was prepared by loperamide. Normal rats were also used in the study. Short-chain fatty acids in rat feces were detected by gas chromatography. The bacterial communities in rat feces were identified by 16S rDNA gene sequencing. 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) and tryptophan hydroxylase 1 (Tph1) were measured by ELISA. The results showed that CMS-Na increased the fecal granule counts and intestinal propulsion rate in constipated mice. The contents of water, acetic acid, propionic acid and n-butyrate in feces, Tph1 in colon and 5-HT in serum of rats were increased. In addition, CMS-Na shortened the colonic transport time in rats. The 16S rDNA gene sequencing results indicated that CMS-Na increased the relative abundance of Alloprevotella and decreased the proportion of Lactobacillus. However, the biodiversity of the normal intestinal flora was not altered. In conclusion, CMS-Na can promote defecation in constipated mice. The mechanism may be related to the regulation of Alloprevotella and Lactobacillus in colon, the increase of short-chain fatty acids, and the promotion of the synthesis of Tph1 and 5-HT.

Novel Extraction Method Using Excipients to Enhance Yield of Genistein and Daidzein in Trifolium pratensis L.

Isoflavones can be found in different chemical forms, but the health beneficial effects mainly appear in their free forms—aglycones. Their yield in red clover (Trifolium pratensis L.) extracts differs due to different extraction and hydrolysis methodologies. The main aim of this study was to obtain the highest yields of daidzein and genistein from red clover blossoms through the various extraction and hydrolysis methods and to increase their quantities using additional excipients. Extracts were obtained by ultrasound-assisted, heat-reflux and maceration methods combining them with acidic, alkaline, and thermal hydrolysis. Using ultrasound-assisted extraction with optimal conditions and heat-reflux method highest yields of isoflavones were obtained in UTE510 (393.23 ± 19.66 µg/g daidzein and 171.57 ± 8.58 µg/g genistein); UTE530 (415.07 ± 20.75 µg/g daidzein and 150.57 ± 7.53 µg/g genistein) and HNE5 (432.30 ± 21.61 µg/g daidzein and 154.50 ± 7.72 µg/g genistein) samples. These conditions were used with excipients: magnesium aluminometasilicate, croscarmellose sodium, sodium carboxymethyl starch and vinylpyrrolidone-vinyl acetate copolymer. This is the first study reporting the ability of the vinylpyrrolidone-vinyl acetate copolymer to promote solubilization and availability of active compounds from a herbal extract, resulting in enhanced isoflavones yield. The results of the present study showing increased solubility and availability provided by the vinylpyrrolidone-vinyl acetate copolymer suggest that this preparation could in principle also reduce variability due to limited water solubility of isoflavones.

Thermoanalytical studies (TG–DTG–DSC, Py–GC/MS) of sodium carboxymethyl starch with different degrees of substitution

The paper presents the results of thermal analysis of polymer material in the form of starch derivatives in the form of sodium carboxymethyl starch (CMS–Na) with degree of substitution (DS) in the range 0.2–0.9 for the preparation of foundry binder. In this work, the thermal behavior of the modified starch and qualitative assessment of degradation products released during pyrolysis were determined and comprised. The analysis of the course of progressive decomposition of the starch material under controlled heating in the range of 25–1000 °C in anaerobic atmosphere was based on the results of thermal analysis methods (TG–DTG–DSC) in combination with the results of pyrolysis–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (Py–GC/MS). The detailed TG–DTG–DSC analysis allowed to determine and compare the temperature at which the process of decomposition of carboxymethyl starches sodium salts with different degrees of substitution begins and to determine the course of its degradation under conditions corresponding to the contact of the foundry binder in the form of starch material with liquid metal (conditions like in foundry mold). Thermogravimetric analysis shows that decomposition processes are multistage, and dehydration is the first step of decomposition. Moreover, TG–DTG–DSC analyses indicate that the thermal stability and the decomposition path of tested compounds depend on the DS. Results of Py–GC/MS studies showed that the formation of decomposition products (including cyclic and aromatic hydrocarbons) in a predetermined temperature range is lower in the case of CMS–Na with high DS.