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Recent Advances in Dietary Polysaccharides for Human Health and Diseases

A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Carbohydrates".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 April 2026 | Viewed by 843

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
Interests: chemical structure and biological functions of food polysaccharides; fungal and plant non-starch polysaccharides; gut health and prebiotics; dietary fiber and human health

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Guest Editor Assistant
School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
Interests: health benefits of dietary fiber, prebiotics, probiotics and synbiotics; role of gut microbiome in metabolic diseases

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The intake of food carbohydrates, particularly complex ones such as starch and non-starch polysaccharides, is a significant component of the human diet. Recent research in food and nutritional sciences has provided a more in-depth understanding of why and how dietary polysaccharides impact human health and diseases beyond their conventional nutritional roles. Due to their diverse chemical structure and physical characteristics, dietary polysaccharides (both native and modified ones), exhibit multifunctional properties in the direct and indirect prevention and treatment of various human health problems such as metabolic diseases and cancer. Some dietary polysaccharides also possess prebiotic properties, potentially improving gut microbiome composition and function.

This Special Issue will focus on recent advances in investigating dietary polysaccharides including, but not limited to, both starch and non-starch polysaccharides (dietary fiber) on human health and diseases. It aims to particularly emphasize the mechanistic correlation of the chemical structure and biological/physiological functions of dietary polysaccharides and their application in our diet as a functional food ingredient.

This Special Issue of Nutrients, “Recent Advances in Dietary Polysaccharides for Human Health and Diseases”, welcomes original research and reviews of the literature pertaining to this important topic.

Prof. Dr. Peter Chi Keung Cheung
Guest Editor

Dr. Nelson Kei
Guest Editor Assistant

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Keywords

  • bioactive carbohydrates
  • dietary fiber
  • non-starch polysaccharides
  • prebiotic polysaccharides
  • resistant starch
  • starch
  • chronic diseases
  • gut health
  • gut microbiome
  • physiological functions

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

14 pages, 1915 KiB  
Article
Effects of Prebiotics Inulin and Oat β-Glucan on Colonic Architecture and Hepatic Proteome in Mice with Circadian-Disruption-Aggravated Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatohepatitis
by Nelson Kei, Kam Kuen Cheung, Ka Lee Ma, Tsz Kwan Yau, Susana Lauw, Xing Kang, Kiwi Wai Yan Sun, Yu Wang, Vincent Wai Sun Wong, Sunny Hei Wong and Peter Chi Keung Cheung
Nutrients 2025, 17(13), 2245; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17132245 - 7 Jul 2025
Viewed by 432
Abstract
Background: Circadian disruption (CD) aggravates metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), but supplementation with prebiotics inulin and oat β-glucan may mitigate its effects. However, their impact on colonic architecture and hepatic proteome remains unclear. Objectives: We aimed to investigate the effects of prebiotics inulin and [...] Read more.
Background: Circadian disruption (CD) aggravates metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), but supplementation with prebiotics inulin and oat β-glucan may mitigate its effects. However, their impact on colonic architecture and hepatic proteome remains unclear. Objectives: We aimed to investigate the effects of prebiotics inulin and oat β-glucan on colonic architecture and hepatic proteome in mice with CD-aggravated MASH. Methods: CD was induced by weekly reversal of the light–dark cycle to simulate shift work. Male C57BL/6J mice were subjected to non-shifted chow, non-shifted fructose, palmitate, cholesterol, and trans-fat (FPC) diet, shifted chow, or shifted FPC diet (SFPC) for 26 weeks. Prebiotics inulin and oat β-glucan supplementation were provided to the SFPC group in the final 10 weeks. Distal colon and serum samples were collected for histological examination and endotoxemia evaluation, respectively. Liver samples were collected for proteomic mass spectrometry analysis. Results: Mice with CD-aggravated MASH were found with colonic crypt loss and a distinct hepatic proteome structure compared to mice with non-CD MASH. Notably, inulin showed better effects than oat β-glucan in preserving colonic crypts in mice with CD-aggravated MASH. Furthermore, inulin supplementation restored the hepatic proteome structure similar to that of non-CD MASH mice, a benefit not observed with oat β-glucan. Conclusions: Given our prior findings showing oat β-glucan’s superior ability to enrich gut bacterial species associated with MASH improvement under CD, this study highlights inulin’s unique benefits for colonic architecture and hepatic proteome regulation in CD-aggravated MASH. Full article
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