## 3 Results and Discussion
### Effects of U. pertusa Administration on Intestinal Mortility  
A reduction in stool excretion induced by loperamide leads to the suppression of intestinal peristalsis via several mechanisms such as a decline in calmodulin and paracellular permeability, and the blockade of the calcium channel [28].  
To determine the improvement effects of _U. pertusa_ on intestinal peristalsis, we examined intestinal length and transit ratio. As shown in Figure 4B, the administration of loperamide resulted in a decreased intestinal length (C, 46.6 \(\pm\) 1.7 cm) compared to the vehicle group (N, 52.3 \(\pm\) 3.8 cm) (\(p\) \(<\) 0.05). In contrast, treatment with _U. pertusa_ (AL, 54.6 \(\pm\) 2.2 cm; AH, 53.6 \(\pm\) 4.8 cm) (\(p\) \(<\) 0.01) increased the intestinal length reduced by loperamide.  
Figure 4: The effects of _U. pertusa_ administration on intestinal motility in mice. (**A**) An illustration portraying phenol red movement within the intestinal tract. The red bar demarcates the location of phenol red. (**B**) The total distances traversed post-administration of 5 mg\(\cdot\)kg\({}^{-1}\cdot\)day\({}^{-1}\) loperamide following treatment with P, AL, AH, or saline solution were measured using 0.5% phenol red. (**C**) A computation of the intestinal transit rate using the relevant formula. Experiments were conducted in septupletica. Results are presented as the mean \(\pm\) standard deviation. * \(p\)\(<\) 0.05, ** \(p\)\(<\) 0.01, *** \(p\)\(<\) 0.001, compared with the control group. Abbreviations: N, vehicle; C, control; P, positive control; AL, 100 mg\(\cdot\)kg\({}^{-1}\cdot\)day\({}^{-1}\)_U. pertusa_ extract; AH, 500 mg\(\cdot\)kg\({}^{-1}\cdot\)day\({}^{-1}\)_U. pertusa_ extract.  
Figure 3: The effects of _U. pertusa_ administration on stool excretion in mice. (**A**) Fecal samples collected after a 5 h constipation-induction treatment were measured. (**B**) Subsequently, the samples were oven-dried and weighed to determine the dry weight. Water content was determined using the relevant formula. Experiments were conducted in septupletica. Results are presented as the mean \(\pm\) standard deviation. * \(p\)\(<\) 0.05, ** \(p\)\(<\) 0.01, *** \(p\)\(<\) 0.001, compared with the control group. Abbreviations: N, vehicle; C, control; P, positive control; AL, 100 mg\(\cdot\)kg\({}^{-1}\cdot\)day\({}^{-1}\)_U. pertusa_ extract; AH, 500 mg\(\cdot\)kg\({}^{-1}\cdot\)day\({}^{-1}\)_U. pertusa_ extract.  
Additionally, the intestinal transit rate was significantly reduced in the loreparamide treatment group (C, 19.8 \(\pm\) 7.4%) compared with that in the vehicle group (N, 56.2 \(\pm\) 9.0%; \(p\) < 0.001) on day 15 (Figure 4C). However, _U. pertusa_ treatment increased the intestinal transit rate (AL, 30.3 \(\pm\) 4.0%; AH, 31.3 \(\pm\) 6.9%; \(p\) < 0.05).  
It has been reported that carbohydrates, including polysaccharides, alleviate loreparamide-induced constipation by modulating the secretion of SCFAs related to gastrointestinal function [29, 30]. Our analysis confirmed that _U. pertusa_ contains high levels of carbohydrates, particularly polysaccharides, which may stimulate intestinal peristalsis. Overall, our study findings suggest that the improvement in intestinal motility observed upon _U. pertusa_ intake is likely attributable to its carbohydrate content, especially its polysaccharide content.