Location: Small Grain and Food Crops Quality Research
Project Number: 3060-21650-002-034-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Sep 1, 2022
End Date: Dec 31, 2024
Objective:
(1) Define the impact of pea versus egg white protein consumption on gut microbial metabolism; and (2) Measure gut barrier function and occurrence of gastro-intestinal symptoms following consumption of pea or egg white-derived protein.
Approach:
The objectives will be met by conducting a single blinded randomized crossover-controlled feeding study in healthy individuals. Subjects will consume individualized very low protein diets augmented with either pea or egg white-derived protein supplements for a period of 10 days followed by a two-week washout period, prior to a second 10-day intervention consuming the opposite protein source as the first stage. Stool samples will be collected for metabolomic analysis, lactulose-mannitol test will be conducted to assess gut barrier function and gastro-intestinal (GI) symptom questionnaires will be completed, at baseline, end of the first intervention, following washout, and the end of the second intervention. Fecal metabolomics will be carried out using mass spectrometry followed by in-depth computational analysis of data to measure abundance of primarily bacterial derived molecules, along with global profiling. Lactulose-mannitol ratio will be measured in urine following consumption of both sugars, using a commercially available test. Questionnaires will be used to evaluate GI symptoms based on the PROMIS (Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System) scale. All endpoints will compare the effects of consuming either protein source to each other.
