Drug Discov Ther. 2020;14(1):8-13. (DOI: 10.5582/ddt.2020.01002)
Polysaccharides of a fermented food, natto, suppress sucrose-induced hyperglycemia in an in vivo evaluation system and inhibit glucose uptake by human intestinal cells
Matsumoto Y, Takahashi M, Sekimizu K
Natto is a well-known traditional Japanese food produced by fermenting soybeans with Bacillus subtilis var natto. Here we found that the water-soluble viscous fraction of natto inhibits sucrose-or glucose-induced hyperglycemia in silkworms. The water-soluble viscous fraction treated with DNase I, RNase A, and proteinase K, followed by phenol extraction also suppressed sucrose-induced hyperglycemia in silkworms. The enzyme-treated polysaccharide fraction of natto inhibits glucose uptake by Caco-2 cells, human intestinal epithelial cells. These findings suggest that the polysaccharide components of natto selected on the basis of their suppressive effects on sucrose-induced hyperglycemia in silkworms inhibit glucose uptake by human intestinal cells.