I Gede Putu Adhi Wedharga, Made Cahyani Trisna Ananda, Nadilla Faiza Richadini, Bernadette Dian Novita, Herjunianto Herjunianto, Silvia Sutandhio, Adi Pramono Hendrata, Mulya Dinata, Yu Hirata, Suryo Kuncorojakti, Hendy Wijaya, Dawei Chen, Ester Natalia Dorti Siagian, Resa Sasmita, Yudy Tjahjono, Sentot Santoso
Purpose: Dietary lifestyle shifts toward a Western diet contribute to obesity and the rising burden of metabolic dysfunction–associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). Non-starch polysaccharides (NSPs), particularly inulin and glucomannan, have been recognized for their fermentability, viscosity, and immunometabolic effects that ameliorate obesity-related chronic low-grade inflammation. However, the combined biological impact of highly fermentable inulin and highly viscous glucomannan on hepatic meta-inflammation has not been fully established. This study investigated the preventive effects of an inulin–glucomannan mixture on MASLD development in Western diet–fed mice. Methods: Male C57BL/6 mice were assigned to four diet groups: standard diet (SD), high-fat diet and high-sucrose drink (HD), HD supplemented with 20% inulin (H-IO), and HD supplemented with 20% inulin + 0.5% glucomannan mixture (H-IG). After 8 weeks, metabolic profiles and hepatic steatohepatitis-related markers were evaluated. Results: Compared with the HD group, the H-IG group exhibited significantly lower body-weight gain, reduced epididymal adiposity, improved TC/HDL-c and TG/HDL-c ratios, and attenuated MASLD scores. The NSP mixture also markedly downregulated hepatic IL-6 and CD36 protein levels, alongside Lbp, Nfkb1, and Cd36 mRNA expression, with a large inhibitory effect on inflammatory signaling (η²p > 0.7). Conclusions: These findings demonstrate that combining inulin and glucomannan NSP yields a preventive metabolic benefit similar to or greater than inulin alone, mitigating Western diet-induced MASLD through modulation of hepatic meta-inflammation. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2026.
Faculty of Medicine, Widya Mandala Surabaya Catholic University, Surabaya, Indonesia; Division of Diabetes and Endocrinology, Department of Internal Medicine, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, Kobe, Japan; Division of Veterinary Anatomy, Department of Veterinary Science, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, Indonesia; Faculty of Pharmacy, Widya Mandala Surabaya Catholic University, Surabaya, Indonesia; Institute of Blood Transfusion, Guangzhou Blood Centre, Guangzhou, China; Institute for Clinical Immunology, Transfusion Medicine and Hemostaseology, Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany