Development of a Human Gastric Digestion Simulator Equipped with Peristalsis Function for the Direct Observation and Analysis of the Food Digestion Process

Abstract

A novel in vitro gastric device, the Gastric Digestion Simulator (GDS), was developed for the direct observation and quantitative analysis of the food digestion process in the human stomach. In addition to simulating the chemical digestion environment, this device provides a physical digestion environment comparable to that found in the stomach by simulating peristalsis, which is assumed to contribute to solid food disintegration. The GDS was successfully used to directly observe the disintegration process of Tofu (bean curd) as a typical solid food containing protein. The size distribution and protein content of Tofu particles during the digestion experiments were investigated. The results demonstrated the difference in particle disintegration between GDS and flask shaking experiments, which may be due to the lack of peristalsis in the latter case. Moreover, the size distribution of Tofu particles after the GDS experiments was affected by the physical properties of Tofu, thus revealing the usefulness of GDS for food digestion analysis.