Levan from Bacillus subtilis Natto: its effects in normal and in streptozotocin-diabetic rats

Levan is an exopolysaccharide of fructose primarily linked by ƒÀ-(2¨6) glycosidic bonds with some ƒÀ-(2¨1) branched chains. Due to its chemical properties, levan has possible applications in both the food and pharmaceutical industries. Bacillus subtilis is a promising industrial levan producer, as it ferments sucrose and has a high levan-formation capacity. A new strain of B. subtilis was recently isolated from Japanese food natto, and it has produced levan in large quantities. For future pharmaceutical applications, this study aimed to investigate the effects of levan produced by B. subtilis Natto, mainly as potential hypoglycemic agent, (previously optimized with a molecular weight equal to 72.37 and 4,146 kDa) in Wistar male rats with diabetes induced by streptozotocin and non-diabetic rats and to monitor their plasma cholesterol and triacylglycerol levels. After 15 days of experimentation, the animals were sacrificed, and their blood samples were analyzed. The results, compared using analysis of variance, demonstrated that for this type of levan, a hypoglycemic effect was not observed, as there was no improvement of diabetes symptoms during the experiment. However, levan did not affect any studied parameters in normal rats, indicating that the exopolysaccharide can be used for other purposes.

Nutritional requirements of Zymomonas mobilis CCT 4494 for levan production

The aim of this work was to study the nutritional requirements of Zymomonas mobilis CCT 4494 for levan production in three chemically defined media. During the optimization of the fermentative process for the production of the exopolysaccharide, different concentrations of glucose, fructose and sucrose as carbon source and yeast extract as vitamin source were tested. Variations of incubation temperature and initial pH of the medium were observed. The results showed that medium containing 20.0 percent sucrose and 0.5 percent yeast extract, with initial pH of 7.0, incubated at 30°C gave a 43.0 percent yield of the biopolymer.

Evaluation of supplementation of sucrose medium on the synthesis of Zymomonas mobilis bio-products / Avaliação da suplementação do meio de sacarose na formação de bio–produtos por Zymomonas mobilis

The effect of the variables pantothenic acid, yeast extract and sodium chloride, as well as the cell permeabilization technique, were investigated on the formation of levan, ethanol, sorbitol and biomass of Zymomonas mobilis, using a 24-1 fraction factorial design. Cell growth was determined by turbidimetry at 605 nm, relating it to a biomass with a dry weight calibration curve. Reducing sugars were quantified according to Somogyi and Nelson. Total sugars were quantified by the phenol-sulfuric acid method, sorbitol by HPLC and ethanol. The levan produced was precipitated by the addition of absolute ethanol and quantified in fructose units. In levan biosynthesis, the variable that had the largest contribution was cell condition. The results suggested that the factors that most affected biomass and ethanol formation were sodium chloride concentration and cell condition that affected negatively on production. For sorbitol, the variable that had a significant effect was permeabilization, which decreased its synthesis. Studies to amplify the range of established factors would be important.

A influência das variáveis: ácido pantotênico, extrato de levedura, cloreto de sódio, e a técnica de permeabilização celular foram investigadas na formação de levana, sorbitol, etanol e biomassa de Zymomonas mobilis utilizando um delineamento estatístico fatorial fracionado 24-1. A biomassa foi determinada por turbidimetria, Os açúcares redutores foram quantificados por Somogy e Nelson, açúcar total por Fenol Sulfúrico, sorbitol por HPLC e etanol por micro-destilação. A levana produzida foi precipitada com etanol absoluto e determinada como unidade de frutose. Na biossíntese de levana, a variável que mais contribuiu foi a condição celular. Os resultados sugerem que, para a formação da biomassa e etanol, os fatores que mais interferiram foram a concentração de cloreto de sódio e a condição celular que influencia negativamente a produção. Para o sorbitol, a variável que teve efeito significativo foi a permeabilização celular que atuou diminuindo a sua síntese. Estudos que ampliam a faixa de variação dos fatores estabelecidos são interessantes.

Evaluation of supplementation of sucrose medium on the synthesis of Zymomonas mobilis bio-products - doi: 10.4025/actascibiolsci.v32i3.1519

The effect of the variables pantothenic acid, yeast extract and sodium chloride, as well as the cell permeabilization technique, were investigated on the formation of levan, ethanol, sorbitol and biomass of Zymomonas mobilis, using a 24-1 fraction factorial design. Cell growth was determined by turbidimetry at 605 nm, relating it to a biomass with a dry weight calibration curve. Reducing sugars were quantified according to Somogyi and Nelson. Total sugars were quantified by the phenol-sulfuric acid method, sorbitol by HPLC and ethanol. The levan produced was precipitated by the addition of absolute ethanol and quantified in fructose units. In levan biosynthesis, the variable that had the largest contribution was cell condition. The results suggested that the factors that most affected biomass and ethanol formation were sodium chloride concentration and cell condition that affected negatively on production. For sorbitol, the variable that had a significant effect was permeabilization, which decreased its synthesis. Studies to amplify the range of established factors would be important.

The effect of the variables pantothenic acid, yeast extract and sodium chloride, as well as the cell permeabilization technique, were investigated on the formation of levan, ethanol, sorbitol and biomass of Zymomonas mobilis, using a 24-1 fraction factorial design. Cell growth was determined by turbidimetry at 605 nm, relating it to a biomass with a dry weight calibration curve. Reducing sugars were quantified according to Somogyi and Nelson. Total sugars were quantified by the phenol-sulfuric acid method, sorbitol by HPLC and ethanol. The levan produced was precipitated by the addition of absolute ethanol and quantified in fructose units. In levan biosynthesis, the variable that had the largest contribution was cell condition. The results suggested that the factors that most affected biomass and ethanol formation were sodium chloride concentration and cell condition that affected negatively on production. For sorbitol, the variable that had a significant effect was permeabilization, which decreased its synthesis. Studies to amplify the range of established factors would be important.

The Effects of Fructose Polymer Levan on the Body Fat Accumulation and Serum Lipid Profiles of Korean Women / 대한지역사회영양학회지

This study was performed to investigate the effects of a levan diet on the body fat accumulation and serum lipid composition of 29 Korean women over a period of up to 12 weeks (n = 13 for the control group, n = 16 for the levan group). The subjects ate an uncooked diet (6 g) with 400 ml of tap water twice a day. The mean body weight and height measurements of the subjects (levan group) at the outset were 66.0 +/- 8.8 kg and 156.7 +/- 5.3 cm, respectively. The subjects showed a significant reduction in weight, body fat mass, anthropometric measurements and skinfold thickness during the experimental period. The waist hip ratio (WHR) was 0.88 +/- 0.03 at the outset, and fell to 0.82 +/- 0.05 after 4 weeks. The intake of levan was also influenced on the levels of serum Fe, leptin, lipoprotein lipase, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, and triglyceride. The serum glucose levels were within the normal range during the experimental period. The initial serum triglyceride level was 121 mg/dl, but fell to 103 mg/dl after 4 weeks of levan supplementation. The current study demonstrates that a levan diet is effective in controlling weight, body fat, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, and triglyceride levels.