Prebiotic potential of resistant starch derived from native, phosphorylated and cross-linked sago starches

The objectives of this study were to find out the prebiotic index (PI) and short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) level of the resistant starch (RS) type 4, determined by the fermentation
method. The RS from native, phosphorylated and cross-linked sago starches were fermented using a faecal inoculum. The production of SCFA was chromatographically characterized. The grown bacteria were identified using the selective media to enumerate bifidobacteria, lactobacilli, clostridia and Bacteroides to calculate the PI. The results showed that the RS enhanced the growth of bifidobacteria and lactobacilli, resulting in a higher PI (1.19) than the value for inulin (1.15) following incubation for 24 hrs. The fermentation of RS from native and phosphorylated sago starches was faster than that of RS from cross-linked sago starch. The increase in the numbers of bifidobacteria and lactobacilli during fermentation of RS gave higher SCFA production with a consequence of lower pH.