Effects of Water-Soluble Carbohydrate Concentrate from Chinese Jujube on Different Intestinal and Fecal Indices

This study was to investigate the effects of water-soluble carbohydrate concentrate (WSCC) prepared from Chinese jujube ( Zizyphus jujuba) on different intestinal and fecal indices in a hamster model. WSCC contained carbohydrates (771 g kg(-1) of WSCC) including glucose, fructose, pectin polysaccharide, and hemicellulose. The administration of WSCC (5.0 and 15 g kg(-1) of diet) effectively ( P<0.05) shortened gastrointestinal transit time (by 34.2-57.3%), reduced cecal ammonia (by 58.1-60.3%), elevated total short-chain fatty acid concentrations in cecum (3-4-fold), increased fecal moisture (147-170%), reduced daily fecal ammonia output (by 31.9-75.8%), and decreased the activities of beta-D-glucuronidase (by 73.0-73.8%), beta-D-glucosidase (by 58.2-85.7%), mucinase (by 46.2-72.6%), and urease (by 31.9-48.7%) in feces. This study suggested that adequate consumption of jujube WSCC (at least 5.0 g kg(-1) of diet or 40 mg day(-1)) might exert favorable effects on improving the gastrointestinal milieu and reducing the exposure of intestinal mucosa to toxic ammonia and other detrimental compounds.