Grain filling in sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) mainly depends on actual photosynthesis, being the contribution of stored reserves in stems (sucrose, hexoses, and starch) rather low. Drought periods during grain filling often reduce yield. Increasing the capacity of stem to store reserves could help to increase grain filling and yield stability in dry years. Fructans improve water uptake in s...

RATIONALE Infant formulae are being supplemented with probiotics, prebiotics, or symbiotic despite uncertainties regarding their efficacy. Mexican agave is an interesting source of fructans with particular features and with potential prebiotic effects. MATERIAL AND METHODS RCT in 600 healthy term babies (20 ± 7 days), allocated to receive standard infant formula (control) or infant formula ad...

Glycoside hydrolases of families 32 (GH32) and 68 (GH68) belong to clan GH-J, containing hydrolytic enzymes (sucrose/fructans as donor substrates) and fructosyltransferases (sucrose/fructans as donor and acceptor substrates). In GH32 members, some of the sugar substrates can also function as inhibitors, this regulatory aspect further adding to the complexity in enzyme functionalities within thi...

This study was designed to compare the effects of dietary supplementation with nondigestible carbohydrates, differing in fermentability by colonic bacteria, on hepatic steatosis in growing obese Zucker rats. Male Zucker fa/fa rats were divided into three groups: a control group that received the basal diet, a fructan group that received 10 g highly fermented Synergy 1/100 g diet and a cellulose...

Oligofructose and inulin, selective fermentable chicory fructans, have been shown to stimulate the growth of bifidobacteria, which are regarded as beneficial strains in the colon. Studies were designed to evaluate inulin (Raftiline) and oligofructose (Raftilose) for their potential inhibitory properties against the development of colonic aberrant crypt foci (ACF) in rats. ACF are putative prene...

Dental diseases are among the most prevalent afflictions of humankind. These diseases are associated with the formation of biofilms harboring pathogenic bacteria. Fructosyltransferases (FTF) are extra cellular enzymes of several oral bacteria. FTF are associated with the formation of extracellular polysaccharide matrix (fructans) which play a role in biofilm formation and oral bacteria physiolo...

A fructan exohydrolase selective for (2----1)-linked terminal fructosyl linkages, isolated from barley (Hordeum vulgare L. cv. Morex) stems and leaf sheaths, was used to elucidate the chemical structures of several oligomeric fructans extracted from liliaceous and graminaceous species. Products released by enzymic and mild acid hydrolysis were separated by reversed-phase high-performance liquid...