Anti-Obesity Effects of Dietary Fibers Extracted from Flaxseed Cake in Diet-Induced Obese Mice

Although many efforts have been made to characterize the functional properties of flaxseed, knowledge concerning the properties of insoluble and soluble dietary fibers in flaxseed is still limited. Here, insoluble and soluble dietary fibers were extracted from flaxseed cake—a valuable resource that has not been fully exploited. Subsequently, their monosaccharide compositions, structural properties, and anti-obesity effects in male mice were characterized. The anti-obesity effects of flaxseed cake insoluble dietary fiber (FIDF), flaxseed cake soluble dietary fiber (FSDF), and FIDF combined with FSDF in diet-induced obese mice were investigated in our study. Supplementation with FSDF alone or FIDF and FSDF together lowered the fat accumulation, improved the serum lipid profile, increased the basal metabolism, and improved the gut microbiota of obese mice. Supplementation with FIDF and FSDF together significantly enriched the abundance of g_Akkermansia and g_Bifidobacterium, which are negatively associated with obesity. Supplementation with FIDF alone improved the liver lipid profile, raised the basal metabolism, and enhanced the short-chain fatty acid levels in the guts of the mice. In conclusion, our results collectively support the therapeutic potential of FIDF and FSDF in obesity treatment and indicate that FIDF and FSDF play different roles in the process of obesity treatment. Furthermore, our results provide critical information for flaxseed cake resource exploitation.