Effect of Phytin on Human Gut Microbiome (version 1)
Research type
Research Study
Full title
A human intervention trial investigating the effects of phytin on the human gut microbiome
IRAS ID
251932
Contact name
Arjan Narbad
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Quadram Institute Bioscience
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 9 months, days
Research summary
Phytic acid (PA) is the principle storage form of phosphorus found within many plants such as legumes, seeds, nuts and cereals. Despite PA being generally considered an anti-nutrient, many beneficial properties of PA have been proposed, including anti-oxidant and anti-cancer properties. PA is known to bind iron very strongly. Iron is an essential nutrient for most bacterial species. However, because of low absorption of iron in the small intestine, a relatively large proportion of iron travels into the colon, and is therefore available for our gut bacteria to use, especially those that could prove to be harmful to people’s health, such as enterobacteria. For this reason, the binding of PA with iron could prove to be beneficial to human health as it can potentially limit the use of iron by harmful bacteria. Our gut contains trillions of bacteria, many of which help us to unlock extra nutrients from the food we eat, such as bifidobacteria. In this study we will use capsules that contain the salt form of PA (phytin). We are interested in whether consuming these capsules will a) decrease the proportions of potentially harmful Enterobacteriaceae, b) increase the proportions of Bifidobacteriaceae, and c) be associated with a global change in the microbiome composition. We will collect stool samples from each participant and use these for phylogenetic analyses of the gut microbiome. Stool samples will also be used to measure iron concentrations and how they are affected by capsule consumption. Additionally, as we will be formulating a capsule that only acts in the colon, we will be taking blood samples for serum ferritin measurements (indicative of iron status) to ensure that the phytin capsule has not released earlier in the gastrointestinal tract, and thereby reducing iron levels at the site of absorption via binding.
REC name
East of England - Cambridge Central Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
19/EE/0005
Date of REC Opinion
25 Feb 2019
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion