D-Galacturonic acid is a monosaccharide and the major component of pectin.1 It is formed from glucose in a multi-step process in which uridine-5'-diphosphoglucuronic acid is epimerized to UDP-galacturonic acid, from which D-galacturonic acid can be oligomerized to form pectin or metabolized to L-ascorbic acid , L-galactonic acid, galactaric acid, or D-(+)-xylose .1,2 D-Galacturonic acid (200, 400, and 800 mg/kg) increases body weight and reduces intestinal mucosal permeability in a rat model of iodoacetamide-induced functional dyspepsia.3
1.Gu, X., and Bar-Peled, M.The biosynthesis of UDP-galacturonic acid in plants. Functional cloning and characterization of Arabidopsis UDP-D-glucuronic acid 4-epimerasePlant Physiol.136(4)4256-4264(2004) 2.Loewus, F.A., and Kelly, S.The metabolism of D-galacturonic acid and its methyl ester in the detached ripening strawberryArch. Biochem. Biophys.95(3)483-493(1961) 3.Wu, Y.-Y., Zhong, Z.-S., Ye, Z.-H., et al.D-galacturonic acid ameliorates the intestinal mucosal permeability and inflammation of functional dyspepsia in ratsAnn. Palliat. Med.10(1)538-548(2021)