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Mechanisms of Prebiotic Impact on Health

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Prebiotics and Probiotics Science and Technology

Abstract

Prebiotics were originally defined as non-digestible food ingredients that beneficially affect the host by selectively stimulating the growth and/or activities of one or a limited number of bacteria in the colon, thereby improving host health (Gibson and Roberfroid, 1995). However, a more recent definition is that “A prebiotic is a selectively fermented ingredient that allows specific changes, both in the composition and/or activity in the gastrointestinal microbiota that confers benefits upon host wellbeing and health” (Gibson et al., 2004). The principal concept associated with both of these definitions is that the prebiotic has a selective effect on the microbiota that results in an improvement in the health of the host. Common prebiotics in use include inulins, fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS), galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS), soya-oligosaccharides, xylo-oligosaccharides, pyrodextrins, isomalto-oligosaccharides and lactulose. The majority of studies carried out to date have focused on inulin, FOS and GOS (Macfarlane et al., 2008).

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Abbreviations

AAD :

antibiotic-associated diarrhea

CRC :

colorectal cancer

DBRCT :

double-blind randomized controlled trial

ELISA :

enzyme linked immuno absorbent assay

FOS :

fructo-oligosaccharide

GOS :

galacto-oligosaccharide

GTT :

glucose tolerance test

IBD :

inflammatory bowel disease

IBS :

irritable bowel syndrome

IL-10 :

interleukin 10

INF-γ :

interferon gamma

MALT :

mucosa-associated immune system

NDO :

non-digestable oligosaccharides

NEC :

necrotising enterocolitis

SCFA :

short chain fatty acid

TLR-2 :

toll receptor 2

TNF-α :

tumor necrosis factor alpha

UC :

ulcerative colitis

VLDL :

very low density lipoprotein

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Microbiology and Gut Biology Group, Ninewells Hospital Medical School, Dundee, UK

    H. Steed & S. Macfarlane

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  1. H. Steed
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  1. Department of Food Biosciences, University of Reading Whiteknights, Reading, UK

    Dimitris Charalampopoulos  & Robert A. Rastall  & 

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Steed, H., Macfarlane, S. (2009). Mechanisms of Prebiotic Impact on Health. In: Charalampopoulos, D., Rastall, R.A. (eds) Prebiotics and Probiotics Science and Technology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-79058-9_5

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