Study on the Effect of Jujube Powder on the Quality of Bread

As a traditional Chinese medicine and food, jujube is rich in minerals, dietary fiber, polysaccharides, vitamins and other healthy nutrients, which are the supplemental nutrition to wheat flour. This paper studied the bread quality with jujube powder and determined the appropriate ratio of jujube powder to wheat flour. The related characteristics of bread with jujube powder were analyzed by Electronic nose (E-nose), solid phase micro-extraction gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (SPME-GC-MS), scanning electron microscope, texture analyzer, and Sensory Texture Evaluation Methodology, respectively. The total phenolic content and antioxidant activity of the finished bread were evaluated. The results showed that with the increase of the addition of jujube powder, the specific volume, moisture content and elasticity of bread decreased gradually, while the softness and chewiness were increased progressively. The total phenol content and antioxidant activity of bread increased gradually with the adding of jujube powder content. The bread quality was the best when the addition of 4g of jujube powder/100g of wheat flour. While new volatile substances of jujube bread included hexane, 2, 3-dihydro-3, 5-dihydroxy-6-methyl-4H-phyran-4-one, n-Hexadecane, and l- Caryophyllene, as well as alcohol. Microstructural analysis showed that the structure of stomata changed significantly with the adding of jujube powder. The size of stomata and density of bread are not significantly different from those of ordinary bread with less than 4% jujube powder.

Ultrafine Jujube Powder Enhances the Infiltration of Immune Cells during Anti-PD-L1 Treatment against Murine Colon Adenocarcinoma

Whereas dietary intervention with natural nutrients plays an important role in activating the immune response and holds unprecedented application potential, the underpinning mechanism is poorly understood. The present work was dedicated to comprehensively examine the effects of ultrafine jujube powder (JP) on the gut microbiota and, consequentially, the effects associated with the response rate to anti-PD-L1 treatment against murine colon adenocarcinoma. A murine colon adenocarcinoma model with anti-PD-L1 immunotherapy was established to evaluate how dietary interventions affect the microbiota. In vitro and in vivo experiments confirmed the role of SCFAs in the immune response. Oral administration of JP greatly improves the response of anti-PD-L1 treatment against murine colon adenocarcinoma. Such an improvement is associated with the alteration of gut microbiota which leads to an increased abundance of Clostridiales, including Ruminococcaceae and Lachnospiraceae, an elevated SCFA production, and an intensified infiltration of CD8+ T cells to the tumor microenvironment. This work demonstrates that JP is particularly effective in modulating the gut microbiota for an improved immune checkpoint blockage therapy by boosting cytotoxic CD8+ T cells in tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes. The experimental findings of the present study are helpful for the development of dietary intervention methods for cancer immunotherapy using natural nutrients.

Jujube Powder Enhances Cyclophosphamide Efficiency against Murine Colon Cancer by Enriching CD8+ T Cells While Inhibiting Eosinophilia

Cyclophosphamide (CTX) is widely applied in cancer treatment. However, the outcome is often compromised by lymphopenia, myelosuppression, and gut dysbiosis. Here, we used jujube powder to enhance CTX efficiency through nurturing gut microbiota in order to facilitate favorable metabolisms. It was observed that the oral administration of jujube powder enriched CD8+ T cells in mouse MC38 colon tumor microenvironment and increased the diversity of gut microbiota and the abundance of Bifidobacteriales, which is helpful to the production of butyrate in the cecum content. The application of jujube powder also stimulated the production of white blood cells, especially CD8+ T cells in peripheral and bone marrow, while inhibiting the growth of eosinophils in peripheral blood and the production of IL-7 and GM-CSF in serum. All these are conductive to the significant inhibition of the tumor growth, suggesting the high potential of nurturing gut microbiota with natural products for improving the efficiency of chemotherapy.