In vitro digestion modifies Lepidium meyenii extract, altering its major glucosinolates, lepidilines, β-carbolines, and gut bacterial growth

Authors

• Dominik Tarabasz, Department of Pharmacognosy with Medicinal Plants Garden, Medical University of Lublin, 1 Chodzki Str., 20-093 Lublin, Poland
• Ewa Baranowska-Wójcik, Department of Biotechnology, Microbiology and Human Nutrition, Faculty of Food Science and Biotechnology, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Skromna 8 Street, 20-704 Lublin, Poland
• Paweł Szczeblewski, Department of Pharmaceutical Technology and Biochemistry and BioTechMed Centre, Faculty of Chemistry, Gdansk University of Technology, Gabriela Narutowicza Str. 11/12, 80-233 Gdansk, Poland
• Tomasz Laskowski, Department of Pharmaceutical Technology and Biochemistry and BioTechMed Centre, Faculty of Chemistry, Gdansk University of Technology, Gabriela Narutowicza Str. 11/12, 80-233 Gdansk, Poland
• Klaudia Gustaw, Department of Biotechnology, Microbiology and Human Nutrition, Faculty of Food Science and Biotechnology, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Skromna 8 Street, 20-704 Lublin, Poland
• Marzena Furtak-Niczyporuk, Chair and Department of Public Health, Medical University of Lublin, 1 Chodzki str., 20-093 Lublin, Poland
• Dominik Szwajgier, Department of Biotechnology, Microbiology and Human Nutrition, Faculty of Food Science and Biotechnology, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Skromna 8 Street, 20-704 Lublin, Poland
• Rita Cristina Orihuela-Campos, Academic Department of Stomatology for Children and Adolescents, Integrated Faculties of Medicine, Stomatology and Nursing, Cayetano Heredia Peruvian University, Av. Honorio Delgado 430, Lima
• Henry O. Meissner, NICM, Western Sydney University, Health Research Institute, Bldg J, 158-160 Hawkesbury Rd., Westmead, NSW 2145, Australia
• Julia Borzyszkowska-Bukowska, Department of Pharmaceutical Technology and Biochemistry and BioTechMed Centre, Faculty of Chemistry, Gdansk University of Technology, Gabriela Narutowicza Str. 11/12, 80-233 Gdansk, PolandFollow
• Wirginia Kukula-Koch, Department of Pharmacognosy with Medicinal Plants Garden, Medical University of Lublin, 1 Chodzki Str., 20-093 Lublin, Poland

Keywords

Glucosinolates, in vitro gastro-intestinal digestion model, Lepidium meyenii, Prebiotics, HPLC-MS

Abstract

The tubers of Lepidium meyenii (commonly known as maca) have been used in the Andean cuisine for ages. The study aims to determine the behavior of the extract from the red phenotype of maca in the in vitro gastrointestinal tract model and also to define the overall impact of the extract on the microbiota. Glucosinolates, lepidilines, and a derivative of β-carboline alkaloid, i.e. 1-methyltetrahydro-β-5,6-hydride-carboline-3-carboxylic acid, as representatives of one of the main groups of metabolites were selected for the quantitative analysis after in vitro digestion at every stage of the digestion model. The results showed that lepidilines remained highly stable throughout the digestive simulation, whereas glucosinolates and the β-carboline derivative were substantially degraded, under the influence of the enzymes and bacteria applied in the “large intestine”. In addition, the red maca extract exhibited prebiotic activity by promoting the growth of selected lactic acid bacteria, with Lactococcus lactis showing the most pronounced response, suggesting that maca-derived preparations may hold promising potential as ingredients in functional foods and microbiota-targeted nutritional formulations.

Abstract Image

Recommended Citation

Tarabasz, Dominik; Baranowska-Wójcik, Ewa; Szczeblewski, Paweł; Laskowski, Tomasz; Gustaw, Klaudia; Furtak-Niczyporuk, Marzena; Szwajgier, Dominik; Orihuela-Campos, Rita Cristina; Meissner, Henry O.; Borzyszkowska-Bukowska, Julia; and Kukula-Koch, Wirginia (2026) "In vitro digestion modifies Lepidium meyenii extract, altering its major glucosinolates, lepidilines, β-carbolines, and gut bacterial growth," Journal of Food and Drug Analysis: Vol. 34 : Iss. 3 , Article 11.
Available at: https://doi.org/10.38212/2224-6614.3602

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