Common food thickeners – long thought to pass right through us – are actually digested
Study provides a first glimpse at how these food additives are actually digested by our gut bacteria thanks to natural polysaccharides in our diets.
2025-08-12
(Press-News.org)
It turns out those cellulose-based thickening agents found in common foods can be digested.
Researchers at the University of British Columbia have shown that our gut bacteria can feed on these large molecules – something thought to not be possible – thanks to enzymes that normally help us break down dietary fibre.
“Researchers assumed that these thickening agents, which are artificial derivatives of natural cellulose, just pass right through the digestive system unaltered,” says Dr. Deepesh Panwar, a postdoctoral fellow at the Michael Smith Laboratories and lead author of the study published in the Journal of Bacteriology. “But our study provides a first glimpse at how these food additives are actually digested by our gut bacteria thanks to natural polysaccharides in our diets.”
The complex structure of these cellulose derivatives is what makes them valuable as thickening agents in popular products like ketchup, salad dressing and even toothpaste. This structure is also why gut bacteria have a harder time breaking them down – and why in higher concentrations, they’re even used as laxatives.
This new in vitro study, however, shows that if our gut bacteria are ‘primed’ with natural polysaccharides – long chains of sugars found in fruits, vegetables and cereals – the cellulose derivatives can be digested. This is because the natural polysaccharides activate enzymes that are produced on bacteria cell surfaces that can also break down artificial cellulose molecules.
The findings don’t challenge the fact that these compounds are safe to consume, proven by years of testing and history of use. However, the new research suggests that more work should be done to explore the physical, chemical and biological effects of the digestion of cellulose derivatives by gut bacteria.
One reason researchers may not have seen this before is because bacteria in the lab are often exposed to polysaccharides, including cellulose derivatives, in isolation, instead of in combinations that mimic our diet. On their own, these cellulose derivatives can’t activate the same enzymes, preventing their digestion.
“It was really unexpected for us to see that these cellulose derivatives are in fact used as a source of sugar for bacterial growth,” says Dr. Harry Brumer, a professor in the Michael Smith Laboratories and Department of Chemistry. “It is always a surprise when a new finding goes against the conventional wisdom, in this case showing that these common additives are not just inactive thickeners.”
Dr. Brumer also notes that the next steps in this research will be to look for this ability in a wider range of human gut bacteria, and eventually explore potential effects on nutrition in people.
So, next time you pair a green salad with a sweet dressing, know that your gut bacteria are hard at work helping to break down all parts of your meal.
END
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
2025-08-12
A novel cancer vaccine that stimulates the immune system to target one of the most common cancer-driving mutations has shown encouraging early results in patients with pancreatic and colorectal cancer, two of the most difficult-to-treat malignancies, according to a study led in part by investigators at the UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center.
The findings, published in Nature Medicine, show that the vaccine, called ELI-002 2P, can trigger powerful and lasting immune responses and may help prevent or delay cancer recurrence in high-risk patients whose tumors are driven by KRAS ...
2025-08-12
Adding a MET gene inhibitor enhances the effect of combined chemotherapy and immunotherapy in small cell lung cancer (SCLC), according to a multicenter study led by the Hospital del Mar Research Institute, in collaboration with researchers from the CIBERONC cancer research network. The study, published in Cell Reports Medicine, highlights the role of HGF (hepatocyte growth factor)—which is linked to cell proliferation and survival—in the poor prognosis of this disease and its resistance to treatment. The research explores a novel approach that adds a MET inhibitor to standard therapy and demonstrates improved treatment response.
Small cell lung cancer is one of the most aggressive ...
2025-08-12
There are more than 15,000 cattle and hog feeding operations in the United States. These operations rear 70% of the country's cattle and 98% of its hogs.
Now, for the first time in the nation's history, we know with certainty where most of them are, thanks to research from the University of Michigan.
The research team found that a quarter of the nation's hog and cattle feeding operations are found in just 30 counties out of more than 3,000 in the United States. Going a step further, the team also found that an air pollutant linked to heart and respiratory issues near these animal feeding operations, ...
2025-08-12
Graphite has attracted global interest due to its unique anisotropic properties, including excellent electrical and thermal conductivity. Widely used as a battery anode material and in applications such as electromagnetic shielding, catalysis, and nuclear technology, graphite remains a critical material in both industrial and research fields.
For decades, researchers have sought to produce high-quality artificial graphite with large grains and smooth, layered structures. Conventional methods typically involve high-temperature treatment of polymer ...
2025-08-12
They’ve survived for billions of years in boiling acid, deep-sea vents and salt flats. Now, some of Earth’s oldest life forms — microbes called Archaea — are offering a new weapon in the fight against one of today’s most urgent health threats: antibiotic resistance.
In a new study published in Nature Microbiology, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania used artificial intelligence to identify previously unknown compounds in Archaea that could fuel the development ...
2025-08-12
A research team headed by the University of Zurich has developed a powerful new method to precisely edit DNA by combining cutting-edge genetic engineering with artificial intelligence. This technique opens the door to more accurate modeling of human diseases and lays the groundwork for next-generation gene therapies.
Precise and targeted DNA editing by small point mutations as well as the integration of whole genes via CRISPR/Cas technology has great potential for applications in biotechnology and gene therapy. However, it is very important that the so-called “gene scissors” do not cause any unintended ...
2025-08-12
New method to synthesize carbohydrates could pave the way to biomedical advances
(Santa Barbara, Calif.) — Carbohydrate is a familiar term. It’s the bagel you had for breakfast, the bread in your sandwich, the slice of cake you’re thinking about sneaking later today. But carbs aren’t only in baked goods, and they’re not just found in foods. Small yet structurally complex carbohydrates serve as elements of cell walls and are important in intercellular interactions.
Scientists can quickly and reliably make many biomolecules, from DNA to proteins, using automated instruments. So it may come as a surprise that for decades, scientists have had major difficulty ...
2025-08-12
Plants transport water and nutrients from their environment through specialised pores. Researchers at the University of Geneva (UNIGE) have shed light on a little-known but essential mechanism for proper plant function: the directionality of nutrient transport in roots. The team demonstrates that this transport becomes unidirectional as the root develops. This discovery highlights the central role of the pores connecting plant cells and opens up new perspectives for improving plant resistance to water stress. These findings are published in the journal Molecular Plant.
Roots play ...
2025-08-12
Scientists at Tsinghua University have developed a method to grow kidney tumours in the lab using cells from real patients, offering a potential new tool in the fight against renal cancer. Their research, published in the journal Biofabrication, outlines how 3D bioprinting technology can be used to replicate the unique characteristics of each patient’s tumour.
The team combined tumour cells with other cell types, including blood vessel-like structures, to mimic the environment within the body. The lab-grown tumours, called organoids, are created from real patients’ tumour cells, and exactly mimic their traits. ...
2025-08-12
Cats with dementia have brain changes similar to those of people with Alzheimer’s disease, offering a valuable model for studying the condition in humans, a study says.
Scientists discovered a build-up of the toxic protein amyloid-beta in the brains of cats with the condition – one of the defining features of Alzheimer’s disease.
The findings offer a clearer picture of how amyloid-beta may lead to age-related brain dysfunction and memory loss in cats, experts say.
Many older cats develop dementia, leading to behavioural changes such as increased vocalisation – or meowing – confusion and disrupted sleep ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
[Press-News.org] Common food thickeners – long thought to pass right through us – are actually digested
Study provides a first glimpse at how these food additives are actually digested by our gut bacteria thanks to natural polysaccharides in our diets.
