in vivo prebiotic effect of pumpkin ( Cucurbita maxima ) grown in Sri Lanka

in vivo prebiotic effect of pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima) grown in Sri Lanka Gayani M.S. Lokuge 1* 2 2 2 3 4 4 1 Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya. 2 Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, 130 McGinty Court, 270 Poole Agricultural Center, Clemson University, Clemson, USA. 3 National Institute of Fundamental Studies, Hantana Road, Kandy. 4 Regional Agricultural Research and Development Centre, Makandura.


INTRODUCTION
Obesity is a major public health and economic problem throughout the world and the prevalence is rising each year.The prevalence of obesity in the world is estimated countries (Katulanda et al reported (Wilson et al et al these non-communicable diseases are serious public habits and regular physical activities play vital roles in to protect against obesity and related non-communicable diseases (Dumas et  and Lactobacillus acidophilus (LA-5) were obtained microbial enumerations were bought from HiMedia Seven varieties of pumpkin including two local varieties the analyses.Three subsamples of pumpkin were randomly taken from each of the three replicated fruits harvested until a constant weight was achieved.The dried pumpkin for the compositional analyses and feeding experiment.
16.66 ± 0.97 kg) were selected for the feeding experiment Peradeniya).Four weaned animals from four crossbred (Duroc × Large white) litters were separated and managed under same conditions until the beginning of the feeding experiment.One animal caged in an individual pen was were fed with a standard diet (SD); the pigs in the second treatment received SD with probiotic; the third group was fed SD which was partly replaced with pumpkin powder (100 gkg -1 ) (PD); and PD with probiotics was which was highlighted by the highest content of prebiotic carbohydrates was used to prepare pumpkin powder in the feeding trial.With the aim of analysing the synbiotic two treatments.It was decided to use animalis subsp.lactis (500 mgday -1 ) and Lactobacillus acidophilus (500 mgday -1 ) as probiotic microorganisms.
ad libitum followed by a period of 1 wk during which they were fed a standard diet containing an antibiotic (doxycycline) to achieve similar initial microbial level in their gut.All diets were isocaloric and isonitrogenous (Table 1).
Water soluble prebiotic carbohydrates for each triplicated pumpkin pulp sample were extracted using a method described by Muir et al. (2009).Five hundred milligrams of ground sample was weighed into a 15 mL polystyrene conical tube and dissolved in 10 mL of ddH 2 1 h followed by centrifugation at 3000 × g for 10 min aliquot (1 mL) of the supernatant was diluted with 10 mL of ddH 2 method described by Feinberg et al. carbohydrate concentrations were measured using a high performance anion exchange chromatograph with PA1 guard column (50 × 4 mm) was used to separate oligosaccharides and sugar alcohols at 1 mLmin -1 rate in mobile phase (100 mM sodium hydroxide/ 600 ddH 2 O).Linear gradient of mobile phase was maintained et al. (2013).Oligosaccharides and sugar alcohols were detected using a pulsed nystose.The concentrations of the carbohydrates were -1 with a -1 .CRD Redberry sample was used as an external lab reference and oligosaccharide peak areas for this sample were routinely et al. (2013).digestion by protease and amyloglucosidase to remove with water.The washed residue was used for the determination of SDF according to the method described by Prosky et al. (1992).
were collected from each and every animal just approximately one gram (1 g) of faecal material was added into sterilised sampling bottles containing 9 mL of of homogenised sample was serially diluted in 10-fold increments in sterilised peptone water for microbial enumerations.
Diluted faecal samples were homogenised using was plated on the following agar media.Lactic acid bacteria were enumerated on Lactobacillus MRS Agar where anaerobic environment was generated using agar For the analysis of water soluble prebiotic carbohydrates was conducted and for the feeding trial randomised complete block design (RCBD) was conducted.fed with pumpkin powder incorporated diets has been observed.This could be related to the chemical composition of pumpkin powder as it is characterised amount of prebiotic carbohydrates.The Villachchi variety used for the feeding experiment had the highest amount and converted to short chain fatty acids (SCFAs).fermentation process and the fermented products provide facilitates the establishment of a dense and complex et al. 2012;Gunasekarum et al. 2013). in coliform bacteria.This could be associated with like E. coli Campylobacter and Salmonella spp.and lowers the pH of the gut which makes an unfavourable condition for pathogens through metabolic products such In vitro study by Sreenivas and Lele (2013)

CONCLUSION
This study showed that pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima) pulp contains nutritionally important prebiotic carbohydrates are characterised by the highest concentration of prebiotic microorganism composition of pig faeces was increased quantitative estimation of the composition of microbial community of faecal matter using a molecular genetic necessary.Further studies are also required to analyse the morphological changes in gut and SCFAs concentrations in the gut or faecal matter of the experimental animal with the incorporation of pumpkin powder into the diet.
Faecal bacterial population of pigs fed with experimental diet Standard diet (SD); SD which was partly replaced with pumpkin powder (100 gkg -1 ) (PD).Values are given as means of four replicates ± SD.Means with different superscript letters within same Log 10 cfu/g wet faeces experimental diets (dry matter basis) Standard diet (SD); standard diet partly replaced with pumpkin powder (100 gkg -1 ) (PD) December 2018 Journal of the National Science Foundation of Sri Lanka 46(4) counts in pigs fed with SD with probiotic and PD diets.The faecal coliform counts in SD with probiotic and PD other diets fed pigs.The lowest counts of faecal coliform counts were observed in pigs fed with PD with probiotic diet.
has that Cucurbita maxima supports the growth of Lactobacillus fermentum and Clostridium acetobutilicum species.As supported by the previous in vitro study and the present in vivo ability of pumpkin powder extends the scope of their use in functional foods.Possibilities for incorporation of pumpkin into common foodstuffs have been investigatedLactobacillus acidophilus have been favoured in pigs fed with pumpkin powder.This could be due to the presence pumpkin powder.A previous study has shown that mice fed with different prebiotics increase the numbers of probiotic bacteria such as Lactobacillus acidophilus B94 and Lactobacillus casei L26 present in the faeces when compared with those fed with glucose (Su et al diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and cancer in humans (Macfarlane et al