Effects of short-term fructooligosaccharide intake on equol production in Japanese postmenopausal women consuming soy isoflavone supplements: a pilot study

Tousen, Yuko; Uehara, Mariko; Abe, Fumiko; Kimira, Yoshifumi; Ishimi, Yoshiko

doi:10.1186/1475-2891-12-127

Cited by 25 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Previous clinical trials assessing an FOS intake of ≤10 g/day have been reported for adult women [31,32,33,34,35]; however, the number of reports on FOS perinatal ingestion in women has reduced [17]. In the present study, we found no differences in the frequency of abdominal symptoms in the FOS group compared with those in the placebo group until 10 weeks after the start of the intervention.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 68%

Maternal Prebiotic Ingestion Increased the Number of Fecal Bifidobacteria in Pregnant Women but Not in Their Neonates Aged One Month

Jinno¹,

Toshimitsu²,

Nakamura³

et al. 2017

Nutrients

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Fructooligosaccharides (FOS) can selectively stimulate the growth of bifidobacteria. Here, we investigated the effect of maternal FOS ingestion on maternal and neonatal gut bifidobacteria. In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, we administered 8 g/day of FOS or sucrose to 84 women from the 26th week of gestation to one month after delivery. The bifidobacteria count was detected using quantitative PCR in maternal (26 and 36 weeks of gestation) and neonatal (one month after delivery) stools. Maternal stool frequency was recorded from 24 to 36 weeks of gestation. The number of fecal Bifidobacterium spp. and Bifidobacterium longum in the FOS group was significantly higher than that in the placebo group at 36 weeks of gestation (2.7 × 1010/g vs. 1.1 × 1010/g and 2.3 × 1010/g vs. 9.7 × 109/g). In their neonates, these numbers did not differ between the groups. Also, stool frequency in the FOS group was slightly higher than that in the placebo group two weeks after the intervention (1.0 vs. 0.8 times/day), suggesting a potential constipation alleviation effect. In conclusion, the maternal FOS ingestion showed a bifidogenic effect in pregnant women but not in their neonates.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 68%

Maternal Prebiotic Ingestion Increased the Number of Fecal Bifidobacteria in Pregnant Women but Not in Their Neonates Aged One Month

Jinno¹,

Toshimitsu²,

Nakamura³

et al. 2017

Nutrients

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“…However, it might not be easy to enhance equol production in humans, especially in equol non-producers. Some prebiotic supplementations with soya have shown no effect on the equol-producing capacity in humans ( 52 , 53 ) . However, further studies are needed to confirm whether RS promotes equol production in humans.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The combined effects of soya isoflavones and resistant starch on equol production and trabecular bone loss in ovariectomised mice

Tousen

Matsumoto

et al. 2016

Br J Nutr

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Equol is a metabolite of the soya isoflavone (ISO) daidzein that is produced by intestinal microbiota. Equol has greater oestrogenic activity compared with other ISO, and it prevents bone loss in postmenopausal women. Resistant starch (RS), which has a prebiotic activity and is a dietary fibre, was reported to promote equol production. Conversely, the intestinal microbiota is reported to directly regulate bone health by reducing inflammatory cytokine levels and T-lymphocytes in bone. The present study evaluated the combined effects of diet supplemented with ISO and RS on intestinal microbiota, equol production, bone mineral density (BMD) and inflammatory gene expression in the bone marrow of ovariectomised (OVX) mice. Female ddY strain mice, aged 8 weeks, were either sham-operated (Sham, n 7) or OVX. OVX mice were randomly divided into the following four groups (seven per group): OVX control (OVX); OVX fed 0·05 % ISO diet (OVX + ISO); OVX fed 9 % RS diet (OVX + RS); and OVX fed 0·05 % ISO-and 9 % RS diet (OVX + ISO + RS). After 6 weeks, treatment with the combination of ISO and RS increased equol production, prevented the OVX-induced decline in trabecular BMD in the distal femur by modulating the enteric environment and altered OVX-induced inflammation-related gene expression in the bone marrow. However, there were no significant differences in bone parameters between the ISO + RS and ISO-alone groups in OVX mice. Our findings suggest that the combination of ISO and RS might alter intestinal microbiota and immune status in the bone marrow, resulting in attenuated bone resorption in OVX mice.Key words: Soya isoflavones: Resistant starch: Bones: Osteoporosis: Intestinal microbiota Osteoporosis is a chronic disease characterised by low bone strength, predisposing to an increased risk of fracture (1) . Postmenopausal women have a higher risk of developing osteoporosis because of declining oestrogen concentrations associated with menopause (2) . One treatment for osteoporosis is hormone replacement therapy; however, its use can result in adverse effects, such as the induction of hormone-dependent breast and uterine cancers (3) .Epidemiological studies indicate that women with high soya intake have a lower risk for osteoporosis compared with those consuming a typical Western diet (4) . In addition, many studies indicate that soya isoflavone (ISO)-rich extracts have bone-preserving functions in postmenopausal women (5,6) and oestrogen-deficient animals (7) . Soyabean ISO are structurally similar to oestrogen and bind to oestrogen receptors (8) , suggesting that they exhibit weak oestrogenic action in various tissues and therefore might prevent postmenopausal disorders such as osteoporosis (6) . However, the results of randomised-controlled trials on the bone-protective effects of soya ISO in menopausal women are controversial. Some studies have shown that ISO supplements have a modest effect on bone-sparing or on bone metabolism markers (6,9,10) , whereas others considering ISO supplementation with simultaneous...

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“…Not all but about 20%–35% of Western and 50%–55% Asian adult populations are Equol producers [16]. They can metabolize Daidzein by gut microflora to an estrogenic metabolite called Equol [7-hydroxy-3-(4′-hydroxyphenyl)-chroman], which exhibits biological properties that exceed those of its precursor [17,18,19,20]. Equol is similar in structure to the human female hormone, 17-β-estradiol [21].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Equol, a Dietary Daidzein Gut Metabolite Attenuates Microglial Activation and Potentiates Neuroprotection In Vitro

et al. 2017

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Estrogen deficiency has been well characterized in inflammatory disorders including neuroinflammation. Daidzein, a dietary alternative phytoestrogen found in soy (Glycine max) as primary isoflavones, possess anti-inflammatory activity, but the effect of its active metabolite Equol (7-hydroxy-3-(4′-hydroxyphenyl)-chroman) has not been well established. In this study, we investigated the anti-neuroinflammatory and neuroprotective effect of Equol in vitro. To evaluate the potential effects of Equol, three major types of central nervous system (CNS) cells, including microglia (BV-2), astrocytes (C6), and neurons (N2a), were used. Effects of Equol on the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase (COX-2), Mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling proteins, and apoptosis-related proteins were measured by western blot analysis. Equol inhibited the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced TLR4 activation, MAPK activation, NF-kB-mediated transcription of inflammatory mediators, production of nitric oxide (NO), release of prostaglandin E2 (PGE-2), secretion of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin 6 (IL-6), in Lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated murine microglia cells. Additionally, Equol protects neurons from neuroinflammatory injury mediated by LPS-activated microglia through downregulation of neuronal apoptosis, increased neurite outgrowth in N2a cell and neurotrophins like nerve growth factor (NGF) production through astrocytes further supporting its neuroprotective potential. These findings provide novel insight into the anti-neuroinflammatory effects of Equol on microglial cells, which may have clinical significance in cases of neurodegeneration.

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Effects of short-term fructooligosaccharide intake on equol production in Japanese postmenopausal women consuming soy isoflavone supplements: a pilot study

Cited by 25 publications

References 40 publications

Maternal Prebiotic Ingestion Increased the Number of Fecal Bifidobacteria in Pregnant Women but Not in Their Neonates Aged One Month

Maternal Prebiotic Ingestion Increased the Number of Fecal Bifidobacteria in Pregnant Women but Not in Their Neonates Aged One Month

The combined effects of soya isoflavones and resistant starch on equol production and trabecular bone loss in ovariectomised mice

Equol, a Dietary Daidzein Gut Metabolite Attenuates Microglial Activation and Potentiates Neuroprotection In Vitro

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