| Summary: | Several alternative proteins have emerged that may improve the environmental footprint of our food system. Evaluations into the impact of these protein sources on gastrointestinal health is limited. A study was performed to determine whether aqueous extracts from dietary protein sources, both traditional and alternative, had a differential impact on a leaky gut cell culture model. Aqueous extracts of soybean meal, fish meal, <i>Cyberlindnera jadinii</i>, <i>Saccharomyces sp</i>., Bio-Mos, <i>Chlorella pyrenoidosa</i>, <i>Methylobacterium extorquens</i>, <i>Escherichia coli</i>, and <i>Hermetia illucens</i> were administered onto a Caco-2/THP-1 co-culture and the transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) and IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-α, CXCL10, and MCP-1 concentrations, and NF-κB activity were determined. Principal components analysis and K means clustering were performed. Three clusters were identified: one for soybean meal, one for bacterial meals, and one for the remaining sources. The bacterial meal cluster exhibited pro-inflammatory properties, i.e., correlated with TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-8, and NF-κB. The soybean meal cluster exhibited both pro- and anti-inflammatory properties, whereas the third cluster containing the remaining proteins exhibited anti-inflammatory properties (correlated with TEER and IL-10). These results suggest that aqueous extracts from yeast proteins contribute more positively, and bacterial proteins contribute the least positively, towards intestinal health in a leaky gut model.
|
|---|