Glucomannan from Aloe vera Gel Promotes Intestinal Stem Cell-Mediated Epithelial Regeneration via the Wnt/β-Catenin Pathway

Intestinal stem cells
(ISCs) are essential
to maintain intestinal epithelial regeneration and barrier function.
Our previous work showed that glucomannan from Aloe
vera gel (AGP) alleviated epithelial damage, but the
mechanism was still elusive. Herein, RNA-sequencing analysis showed
that proliferation and differentiation of intestinal epithelial cells
as well as the canonical Wnt pathway were involved in this process.
Further experiments exhibited that AGP promoted nuclear translocation
of β-catenin and expression of transcription factor 7, increased
the number of Lgr5+ ISCs, and differentiated epithelial
cells in mice colon. Intriguingly, AGP reversed the inhibition of
IEC-6 cells proliferation induced by an inhibitor of the canonical
Wnt pathway. Hence, this study implied that AGP promoted proliferation
and differentiation of colon stem cells via Wnt/β-catenin signaling,
which subsequently facilitated the regeneration of epithelial cells
and alleviated colitis in mice. It may provide new insights into the
role of polysaccharides in regulating intestinal homeostasis and relieving
intestinal injury.