| Abstract
| - The dietary origin of lignan phytoestrogens is still poorly understood more than 20 years after theirdiscovery in human urine. Their level in urine has been associated with the consumption of dietaryfiber. This paper reports the study of the excretion of enterolactone, assayed by a time-resolvedfluoroimmunoassay, in rats fed a diet supplemented with 15% wheat bran, one of the main sourcesof fiber in Western countries. Enterolactone excretion regularly increased during the two weeks ofthe diet to reach a value of 45 nmol/day. The level of excretion also increased upon preadaptationto ferulic acid, structurally related to secoisolariciresinol, an established precursor of enterolactonein flaxseeds, and decreased upon preadaptation to potato starch rich in fiber. These results showthat the formation of lignans from wheat bran is influenced by the diet, possibly because of anadaptation of the colonic microflora. Keywords: Lignan phytoestrogens; enterolactone; enterodiol; wheat bran
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