Soluble dietary fiber modulates the rodent gut microbiota linked to decreased adiposity

Obesity and its associated metabolic syndrome constitute a global health challenge. The use of food components that reduce high calorie intake has been proposed as a viable strategy for controlling the obesity pandemic. Dietary fibres have been identified as food components that induce satiety and reduce high calorie intake thereby decreasing weight gain. These dietary fibers can be insoluble molecules such as cellulose that are poorly fermented by the gut microbiota as well as soluble molecules (pectin, fructooligosaccharides, beta-glucan) that are more highly fermentable leading to the production of useful metabolites such as short chain fatty acids (acetate, propionate and butyrate). It is claimed that these short chain fatty acids activate receptors (ffar2 and ffar3) located in the enteroendocrine cells of the gut leading to the release of gut satiety hormones (PYY and GLP-1). Studies carried out in murine models have demonstrated that diets containing various amounts of dietary fibres can result in decreased body weight gain and adiposity albeit these inhibitory effect of dietary fiber on food intake and weight gain are not always observed.