Research and Development Trend of Functional Oligosaccharides

1. Introduction of functional oligosaccharides

Functional oligosaccharides refer to oligosaccharides that can't be digested by the human body and can't be absorbed in the small intestine, that is, indigestible oligosaccharides. But after entering the large intestine, it can promote the proliferation of bifidobacteria in the body, which is commonly known as bifido factor.

Functional oligosaccharides are widely present in nature. There are some of the food sources of oligosaccharides, such as fructo-obgosaccharide in bananas, barley, onions, and Jerusalem artichoke; xylo-oligosaccharides in bamboo shoots; stachyose and raffinose in soybeans; and isomalt oligosaccharide in starch saccharification liquid.

2. Market development prospects of functional oligosaccharides

As a kind of new physiologically active substance, functional oligosaccharides have attracted much attention in the application of disease diagnosis and prevention, nutrition and key protection, plant growth and disease resistance, as well as animal husbandry. Nowadays, it has become an important industry in the field of food, medicine, beverage, feed and agriculture by using modern biotechnology such as genetic engineering, protein engineering and sugar engineering, and other disciplines such as medicine, chemistry and engineering are involved in its development process.

According to the different properties of various functional oligosaccharides, oligosaccharides are unique of each type and each of them has its special application field. For example, depending on its wide pH value, Xylooligosaccharides has a wide range of applications, especially in those products that are slightly acidic. Fructoolig osaccharides (using Jerusalem artichoke as raw material) and galactooligosaccharides have been approved as nutritional supplements, which can be added to various kinds of infant foods. In addition, xylo-oligosaccharides are currently dominant and a small amount of fructooligosaccharides are also applied in the feeding industry.

Soluble Fiber Dietary