Evaluation of the prebiotic and antioxidant potential of Cordia africana hydrocolloid through in vitro gastrointestinal digestion

Cordia africana fruit contains a mucilaginous pulp rich in hydrocolloid, providing a natural source of bioactive polyphenols with potential prebiotic and antioxidant properties, whose bioaccessibility and impact on human intestinal microbiota remain unexplored. This study assessed the prebiotic potential, antioxidant activity, and bioaccessibility of C. africana hydrocolloid during in vitro gastrointestinal digestion, including subsequent gut microbiota fermentation. Following upper gastrointestinal digestion, total phenolic content of the hydrocolloid decreased from 61.1 ± 2.4 to 26.8 ± 0.4 mg GAE/g. The phenolic profile also changed, possibly due to digestive biotransformation, leading to the formation of simpler phenolic acids with better bioaccessibility (43.90 %). The C. africana hydrocolloid was efficiently fermented by probiotic bacteria belonging to the genera Bifidobacterium , Akkermansia, and Lactobacillus . During gut microbiota fermentation, the hydrocolloid increased the relative abundance of Bacteroides and stimulated the production of short-chain fatty acids, mainly acetic and n-butyric acid. Additionally, fermentation led to the release of a high content of phenolic compounds with antioxidant activity, resulting in a significant enhancement of free radical scavenging activity. Overall, these findings demonstrate that the C. africana hydrocolloid has prebiotic potential and may contribute to gut microbiota modulation and improved antioxidant functionality, highlighting its potential as a functional food ingredient for supporting human health and preventing microbiota-related disorders. • The hydrocolloid of C. africana showed great prebiotic potential. • Hydrocolloid polyphenols were highly bioaccessible. • Digestion followed by fecal fermentation increased antioxidant capacity. • C. africana hydrocolloid promoted the growth of probiotic bacteria. • C. africana hydrocolloid increases Bacteroides and short-chain fatty acids levels.