• HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
Sunday, July 27, 2025
BIOENGINEER.ORG
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News Biology

Large molecules from dietary fiber can change gut environment through physical forces

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
January 29, 2019
in Biology
Reading Time: 4 mins read
0
ADVERTISEMENT
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram

New research on how solid particles group together in the small intestine could aid our understanding of how nutrients and drug particles are absorbed during digestion

Large molecules from dietary fiber, called polymers, can physically influence the environment in the small intestine by causing solid particles to group together (or aggregate), according to research published in eLife.

The study, performed in mice, provides new insight on how various types of solid particles found within the small intestine – including microbes, cell debris, particles for drug delivery, and food granules – move together through the gut. This is important because the size and composition of such aggregates could potentially affect the gut environment, including how nutrients and drug particles are absorbed during digestion.

“When particles in the gut form aggregates it can impact the uptake of drugs and nutrients, as well as the function of microorganisms in the gut. But little is understood about how these aggregates form,” says first author Asher Preska Steinberg, a graduate student in Chemistry at the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, US.

A diversity of polymers exists naturally in the gut; they include secretions (such as mucins and immunoglobulins) and dietary polymers, including dietary fibers. It is well known that host-secreted polymers can cause the aggregation of microbes through chemical binding. However, this new work shows that polymers from dietary fiber can also cause aggregation through physical interactions that are dependent on the physical properties of the polymers, such as their molecular weight and concentration, instead of chemical interactions.

“We often think about dietary fibers in the context of nutrition and feeding our gut microbes, but like all polymers, they are also governed by the laws of polymer physics. We wanted to investigate whether physical forces induced by these polymers play a role in structuring particles in the small intestine,” Preska Steinberg explains.

To do this, the team first studied the interactions between polystyrene particles that were densely coated with polyethylene glycol (PEG), and the contents of the mouse small intestine. PEG-coating has previously been previously used to minimize chemical interactions between particles and biopolymers, allowing the team to focus on the role of physical interactions. They first discovered that the PEG-coated particles, which are commonly used in drug delivery, group together as aggregates within the small-intestine fluid.

Analysis of the fluid later revealed that polymers indeed contribute to the aggregation of PEG-coated particles, and that the extent of aggregation depends on the polymers’ concentration and molecular weight.

The team next carried out tests with immunoglobulins and a mucin, called MUC2, on PEG-coated particles. They found that although MUC2 may play a role in the aggregation of PEG-coated particles, it was not required for aggregation to occur.

“Instead, our results suggested that aggregation can be controlled using polymers from fibers the mice were eating,” says senior author Rustem Ismagilov, Ethel Wilson Bowles and Robert Bowles Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at the California Institute of Technology. “What’s more, this aggregation is tunable. By feeding the mice dietary fibers of different molecular weights, we found that we were able to control aggregation in their intestinal fluid.”

“This previously underappreciated role of dietary fiber polymers may also occur in the aggregation of other particles in the intestine, and it will be important for us to explore this further,” Ismagilov concludes.

###

Reference

The paper ‘High-molecular-weight polymers from dietary fiber drive aggregation of particulates in the murine small intestine’ can be freely accessed online at https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.40387. Contents, including text, figures and data, are free to reuse under a CC BY 4.0 license.

Media contact

Emily Packer, Senior Press Officer

eLife

[email protected]

01223 855373

About eLife

eLife aims to help scientists accelerate discovery by operating a platform for research communication that encourages and recognises the most responsible behaviours in science. We publish important research in all areas of the life and biomedical sciences, including Physics of Living Systems, which is selected and evaluated by working scientists and made freely available online without delay. eLife also invests in innovation through open-source tool development to accelerate research communication and discovery. Our work is guided by the communities we serve. eLife is supported by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Max Planck Society, the Wellcome Trust and the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation. Learn more at https://elifesciences.org/about.

To read the latest Physics of Living Systems research published in eLife, visit https://elifesciences.org/subjects/physics-living-systems.

Media Contact
Emily Packer
[email protected]

Related Journal Article

https://elifesciences.org/for-the-press/f061f274/large-molecules-from-dietary-fiber-can-change-gut-environment-through-physical-forces
http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.40387

Tags: BiologyBiomechanics/BiophysicsDiet/Body WeightMedicine/Health
Share12Tweet8Share2ShareShareShare2

Related Posts

Archaeal Ribosome Shows Unique Active Site, Hibernation Factor

Archaeal Ribosome Shows Unique Active Site, Hibernation Factor

July 26, 2025
Machine Learning Uncovers Sorghum’s Complex Mold Resistance

Machine Learning Uncovers Sorghum’s Complex Mold Resistance

July 26, 2025

Root N-Hydroxypipecolic Acid Circuit Boosts Arabidopsis Immunity

July 26, 2025

Single-Cell Screens Reveal Ebola Infection Regulators

July 26, 2025
Please login to join discussion

POPULAR NEWS

  • Blind to the Burn

    Overlooked Dangers: Debunking Common Myths About Skin Cancer Risk in the U.S.

    50 shares
    Share 20 Tweet 13
  • USF Research Unveils AI Technology for Detecting Early PTSD Indicators in Youth Through Facial Analysis

    42 shares
    Share 17 Tweet 11
  • Dr. Miriam Merad Honored with French Knighthood for Groundbreaking Contributions to Science and Medicine

    45 shares
    Share 18 Tweet 11
  • New Measurements Elevate Hubble Tension to a Critical Crisis

    43 shares
    Share 17 Tweet 11

About

We bring you the latest biotechnology news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Follow us

Recent News

Durable, Flexible Electrochemical Transistors via Electropolymerized PEDOT

Challenges and Opportunities in High-Filled Polymer Manufacturing

Epicardial Fat: Protector or Threat to Heart Health?

  • Contact Us

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
    • Home Page 2
  • News
  • National
  • Business
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Science

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.