Effects of dehulled adlay on the culture count of some microbiota and their metabolism in the gastrointestinal tract of rats

Experiments were conducted to study the effect of a dietary supplement of d ehulled adlay (Coix lachryma-jobi L, var, ma-yuen Stapf) on the culture cou nts of some important groups of intestinal bacteria and their metabolism in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract of Sprague-Dawley rats. Rats were divided into four groups, and each group was fed a diet containing different levels of dehulled adlay for 30 days as follows: 0% (control), 5%, 20%, and 40%. All animals fed with adlay had normal healthy intestinal walls and no patho genic signs whatsoever. There were no significant differences in body weigh t gain or the cecal-pH between different groups of rats. Both the 20% and 4 0% groups had lower culture counts of enterics in their feces than the 5% a nd control groups, whereas the culture counts of fecal lactic acid bacteria were higher in feces of rats fed with adlay than in the control group. Cec al total short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) content and fecal SCFA were signific antly higher in the 20% and 40% groups than in the control and 5% groups. A ll the adlay-fed rats had a higher fecal butyric acid concentration than th e control rats. It is concluded that adlay has a significant influence on t he growth of intestinal bacteria, which may ultimately affect the physiolog y and other functions of GI tracts of rats.