Hypoglycemic effect of pyrodextrins with different molecular weights and digestibilities in diet-induced obese mice.

Pyrodextrin shares some properties of resistant starch, which is metabolically beneficial, and has potential applications as a functional food. In this study, we report that the oral administration of pyrodextrin (50 mg/kg/d for 7 weeks) decreased blood glucose (from 9.18 +/- 1.47 to 7.67 +/- 0.42 mmol/L), serum HbA1c, triglycerides, adipocyte size, and body weight (from 24.4 +/- 1.2 to 22.5 +/- 1.2 g) in mice with high-fat-diet-induced obesity. Western-blotting analysis suggested that pyrodextrins decreased intestinal SGLT-1 and GLUT-2 expression to similar to 70 and similar to 60% of the obese control, respectively, which slowed down glucose transportation from the gut into the blood and tentatively improved hepatic metabolism. Moreover, the pyrodextrin with a lower molecular weight of 44 kDa, a more branched structure, and increased nondigestible starch of 46.2 +/- 0.3% showed stronger hypoglycemic activity. This work provides important information for developing pyrodextrins as a functional food and dietary supplement for the management of obesity and diabetes.