chickpea structures through the gut

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    Determining the effect of chickpea tissue-structures on metabolic responses,satiety regulation and gut content along the entire gastrointestinal tract.

  • IRAS ID

    256533

  • Contact name

    Gary Frost

  • Contact email

    g.frost@imperial.ac.uk

  • Sponsor organisation

    Joint Research Compliance Office

  • Duration of Study in the UK

    2 years, 11 months, 30 days

  • Research summary

    Chickpea is an excellent source of dietary fibre. Chickpeas supplementation results in decreases in plasma glucose and insulin concentration (Nestel, 2004) and increased satiety(Zafar, 2017), potentially contributing to lower risk of type 2 diabetes. Recent evidence suggest that these beneficial effects may be attributed to the resistance of chickpea cells to the digestive environment, however to what extent these cellular structures are present depends on how the food is prepared. Under certain cooking conditions, a high proportion of chickpea cells can remain intact, such that the starch and protein remain inside the plant cells upon ingestion. Laboratory studies have shown that these chickpea cells are not readily broken down under simulated digestive conditions of the stomach and small intestine, and that the starch inside is not easily digested (Edwards 2014, Bhattarai et al 2017). Thus, these chickpea cells are rich in so called ‘Resistant Starch’ (Type 1). When this starch is eventually released from the cells and digested and/or fermented, it may stimulate receptors in the gut to send satiety signals to the brain. These signals can be monitored by measurement of gut hormones such as GIP, GLP-1 and PYY in the blood, as these are released in response to nutrients being sensed in different regions of the gut. In this study, the combined monitoring of blood responses and intestinal content after ingestion of chickpea meals with different structures will provide new understanding of the relationship between digestive breakdown in different regions of the gut and the gut-mediated satiety-signalling. This research could provide new understanding of the mechanisms behind some of the observed beneficial effects of chickpea intake, and the inform the best way to prepare plant-based foods to achieve these beneficial effects. These findings will be relevant to understanding why some foods are more filling than others, and how digestion events in the gut impact on metabolism, food intake and the microbiota.
    References:
    Bhattarai et al (2017) Food Funct. 8, 2573-2582
    Edwards CH (2014) ‘Role of plant cell walls in influencing starch bioaccessibility’, PhD Thesis, King’s College London (under embargo)
    Nestel, P et al. (2004). The American journal of clinical nutrition, 79(3), 390-395.
    Zafar, T et al. (2017). Journal of food science and technology, 54(4), 987-994.

  • REC name

    London - Camden & Kings Cross Research Ethics Committee

  • REC reference

    19/LO/0962

  • Date of REC Opinion

    6 Aug 2019

  • REC opinion

    Further Information Favourable Opinion