Calcium Bioavailability in the Soluble and Insoluble Fibers Extracted from Opuntia ficus indica at Different Maturity Stages in Growing Rats

• Published in: Nutrients 2020-10, Vol.12 (11), p.3250
• Main Authors: Mendoza-Ávila, Monsserrat, Gutiérrez-Cortez, Elsa, Quintero-García, Michelle, Real, Alicia Del, Rivera-Muñoz, Eric M, Ibarra-Alvarado, César, Rubio, Efraín, Jiménez-Mendoza, Daniel, Rojas-Molina, Isela
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: adolescence; Adolescents; Aging - drug effects; Animals; Bioavailability; Biological Availability; Biomechanics; Biomedical materials; Bone and Bones - metabolism; Bone Density - drug effects; Bone mineral content; Bone mineral density; Bones; Calcium; Calcium absorption; calcium bioavailability; Calcium, Dietary - pharmacokinetics; Carbohydrates; childhood; Children; Computer architecture; Densitometers; Diet; Dietary fiber; Dietary Fiber - pharmacology; Fibers; Fractures; insoluble dietary fiber; Male; Maturity; Mechanical properties; Neurosciences; Opuntia - chemistry; Opuntia ficus indica; Osteoporosis; Plant Extracts - pharmacokinetics; Potassium; Rats; Rats, Wistar; soluble dietary fiber
• ISSN: 2072-6643; 2072-6643
• DOI: 10.3390/nu12113250

Childhood and adolescence are crucial stages of life for bone health. Therefore, an adequate calcium intake and a healthy life style constitute the main strategies to prevent the risk of osteoporosis-related fractures during adulthood. It has been demonstrated that inclusion of indigestible carbohydrates in foods can help improve calcium absorption in growing stages. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of supplementation of soluble and insoluble fibers extracted from cladodes on calcium bioavailability. Male Wistar rats 4-week old were fed diets added with soluble and insoluble fibers extracted from cladodes at early and late maturity stages, as the only source of calcium. The mineral content, bone mineral density (BMD), physical, microstructural, and biomechanical properties of rat femurs were determined. The bones of rats fed with diets containing a soluble fiber extracted from at early and late maturity stages exhibited better bone properties (resistance to fracture, microarchitecture, and calcium content) than control rats and rats fed with an insoluble fiber from cladodes at both maturity stages. As expected, based on these results, the BMD values were higher in adolescent and pubertal rats fed with a diet containing the soluble fiber. These results demonstrate that the soluble fiber from cladodes is indeed a valuable source of bioavailable calcium, which contributes to improve physical, densitometric, biomechanical, and microstructural properties of bone in growing rats.