Wheat bran xylooligosaccharides improve blood lipid metabolism and antioxidant status in rats fed a high-fat diet

Functional oligosaccharides have been used extensively both as food ingredients and pharmacological supplements. The objective of the present study was to evaluate effects of wheat bran xylooligosaccharides substituted with arabinose as novel functional oligosaccharides on blood lipid metabolism and antioxidant status in rats fed a high-fat diet for 6 weeks. The high-fat diet resulted in hyperlipidemia and an increase in oxidative stress, indicated by a significant rise in body weight, blood glucose and lipids levels, and malondialdehyde level of serum, liver and heart, and a significant decrease in the ratio of reduced glutathione (GSH) to oxidized glutathione (GSSG) and antioxidant enzymes activity in them, however, supplementation of 5% wheat bran xylooligosaccharides had a beneficial effect on controlling body weight, improving blood glucose and lipid levels and increasing antioxidant status. These results demonstrated that wheat bran xylooligosaccharides might be effective in protecting humans against high-fat diet-induced oxidative stress.