Diet supplemented with polyphenol- and glucuronoxylan-rich fiber extract regulates colonic barrier function and cell proliferation in healthy rats. Diet supplemented with polyphenol- and glucuronoxylan-rich fiber extract regulates colonic barrier function and cell proliferation in healthy rats

A diet rich in dietary fiber and polyphenols supports the normal intestinal barrier function crucial for intestinal and overall health. Birch wood-derived fiber containing glucuronoxylans (GX)- and polyphenols have the potential in multiple food technological applications and have favorable effects on gut microbiota and colonic metabolism. However, their impact on intestinal barrier function is unknown. To elucidate their potential as new intestinal health-supporting food ingredients, we investigated the effect of GX- and polyphenol-rich extract (GXpoly ) and highly purified GX-rich extract (pureGX) on the gene expression of the colon mucosa. Overall design: Four-week-old female and male Wistar rats were acclimatized for 12 days and then fed diets supplemented with 10% w/w of polyphenol-and glucoronoxylan-rich extract (GXpoly), highly purified glucoronoxylan (pureGX), or cellulose (control) for four weeks. Gene expression of the mucosa of the colon mid-segment was investigated using Agilent gene expression microarrays with a two-colour design. Samples were carefully randomized for the microarray experiment to control batch effects arising from the experimental set up. Each experimental group contains samples from 10-11 rats (both male and female). Please note that each raw data file contains raw data for two samples as indicated in the corresponding sample description field and thus is linked to the Series records.