The rheological and structural characteristics of gastric (MUC5AC) and duodenal (MUC2) mucin solutions, the structural basis of the adherent mucus layer in the two organs, and their interactions with polyphenols, the phytochemicals which are linked with a number of health benefits, were investigated using particle tracking microrheology and scattering techniques. We used biochemically well characterised porcine mucins as models for human mucins to characterise their viscoelasticity, structure and dynamics as a function of concentration and pH. Additionally, the mesoscopic forces that mediate the integrity of the network were investigated using reducing (dithiothreitol) and chaotropic agents (guanidinium chloride and urea). Mucins in solution were found to be flexible and three distinct viscoelastic regimes were identify ed. At neutral pH, both types of mucin were found to form flexible self-assembled semi-dilute networks above a critical concentration (c*) where the viscosity scales as c 0.53+-0.08 and c 0.53 +-0.06 for MUC5AC and MUC2 respectively. Above a second critical concentration, the entanglement concentration (Ce), the peptide backbones reptate and entangle and there is a sharp increase in viscosity, c 3.92+- 0.38 for MUC5AC and c 5.1 0+-0.08 for MUC2. At low pH, both types of mucin solution undergo a sol-gel transition, forming pH-switchable gels. The addition of tea-derived polyphenols and tea extracts to the mucin solutions has revealed the strong interaction of galloylated phenolic molecules with mucins, which eventually leads to the gelation of the solution. Cross-linking of mucins by galloylated polyphenols is thus expected to have an impact on the physicochemical environment of the stomach and small intestine; the alteration of the organisation of the mucin polymer network is expected to modulate the barrier properties of the two adherent mucus layers which will affect nutrient absorption and the viscoelastic microenvironment of intestinal bacteria.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:617960 |
| Date | January 2014 |
| Creators | Georgiades, Pantelis |
| Contributors | Thornton, David; Waigh, Thomas |
| Publisher | University of Manchester |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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