Effects of Agave tequilanafructans with different degree of polymerization profiles on the body weight, blood lipids and count of fecal Lactobacilli/Bifidobacteriain obese mice

Fructans are dietary fibers with beneficial effects on the gastrointestinal physiology and offer a promising approach for the treatment of some metabolic disorders associated with obesity. In vitroand in vivostudies were developed to test the safety of fructans obtained from Agave tequilanaWeber var. azul. Additionally, an in vivoexperiment using a diet-induced obesity model was performed to compare the effect of agave fructans with different degree of polymerization (DP) profiles: agave fructans with DP > 10 (LcF), agave FOS with DP < 10 (ScF), and agave fructans with and without demineralization (dTF, TF) versuscommercial chicory fructans (OraftiSynergy1(TM)) on the body weight change, fat, total cholesterol, triglycerides and count of fecal Lactobacillusspp. and Bifidobacteriumspp. Results showed that A. tequilanafructans were not mutagenic and were safe even at a dose of 5 g per kg b.w. Obese mice that received ScF showed a significant decrease in body weight gain, fat tissue and total cholesterol without increasing the count of fecal Bifidobacteria. Whereas, obese mice that received LcF and TF showed decreased triglycerides and an increased count of fecal Bifidobacteria. Interestingly, although obese mice that received dTF did not show changes in body weight gain, fat tissue, total cholesterol or triglycerides, they showed an increase in the count of Bifidobacteria. These results demonstrate that both the degree of polymerization and the demineralization process can influence the biological activity of agave fructans.