Evaluation of commercial microbial hydrocolloids concerning their effects on plasma lipids and caecal formation of SCFA in mice

Exopolysaccharides (EPS) are excreted by microorganisms into the surrounding environment and have been shown to have various physiological effects and are commonly used as food additives due to their rheological properties. Four commercially available microbial EPS with different polymeric structures and composition were tested in LDL receptor knock-out mice to investigate their effect on blood cholesterol, lipoproteins and caecal formation of SCFA. After four weeks on a Western diet supplemented with 4% EPS there were significant increases in caecal content and caecal tissue weight for the EPS groups compared to the control. The total pool of caecal short chain fatty acids was increased when mice were fed scleroglucan, xanthan and dextran. There were no differences in plasma cholesterol levels on the experimental diets compared to the control. Plasma triglycerides did not differ between groups. The results indicate that EPS supplementation to a Western diet may help in maintaining a healthy intestinal environment.