Dietary polyphenols, mostly found in fruits and vegetables, have a variety of health benefits, and their interaction with microbiota is critical for their biological functions. Gut microbiota mediate a wide range of biotransformation reactions of polyphenols, which leads to the production of many bioactive metabolites. In this study, we aimed to characterize gut microbiota-mediated biotransformation of three selected polyphenols, namely curcumin, resveratrol, and avicularin. First, anaerobic fermentation experiments were conducted using strains of human fecal bacteria. Next, cell-free supernatants were profiled for targeted metabolites using HPLC and LC-MS. At the same time, bacteria growth was evaluated. For the first time, we identified three bacterial strains that were capable of metabolizing curcumin by hydrogenation and cleavage reaction. These reactions have substrate specificity, they cannot hydrogenase resveratrol. We also discovered deglucuronidation of avicularin by one bacterial strain that was isolated from a healthy volunteer. There were no substantial effects of these polyphenols on the growth of genera morphology of the bacteria. These results emphasized the importance of gut microbial biotransformation of food components and its impact on human health.

Gut microbiota-mediated biotransformation of selected polyphenols

ACS Fall 2021

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.