Lactulose Crystals and Liquid Both Show a Dose-Dependent Prebiotic Effect in a Computer-Controlled In Vitro Model of the Human Proximal Colon

RESEARCH ARTICLE Open Access Volume 1 | Issue 1 ScholArena | www.scholarena.com Journal of Food Technology and Food Chemistry The commercially available forms of the prebiotically active disaccharide lactulose include a liquid and a crystalline form. The prebiotic effect of both forms has not been compared in a similar study setup to date. In this study we repeated the most recent experiment performed with lactulose liquid with the crystalline formulation for comparison of the prebiotic effects. Lactulose crystals were administered daily for 5 days to the in vitro model of the proximal colon, the TNO Intestinal Model (TIM-2). Analysis of NaOH consumption, Short-Chain Fatty Acids (SCFA), Branched-Chain Fatty Acids (BCFA) and ammonia as well as relative abundance of microbiota revealed qualitatively comparable results with slight quantitative differences. After treatment with lactulose crystals, the levels of butyrate increased even more than after administration of the previously investigated lactulose liquid.