Prebiotics in the Management of Obesity and Associated Metabolic Disorders

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Background

The prevalence of obesity and metabolic comorbidities has considerably increased worldwide over the past decades. Despite tremendous efforts to tackle obesity, current therapeutic approaches are disappointing and call for alternatives. Imbalanced gut microbiota or dysbiosis is thought to be a principal factor in the development of obesity and metabolic consequences as the cross-talk and cross-feeding interaction processes between the intestinal microbiota, the host, and the surrounding network of these bacteria contribute to regulating the immune system, inflammatory pathways, and energy homeostasis.

Nowadays, the approach of modulating the gut microbiota using oral supplementation with prebiotics has received the lion’s share of the attention for its beneficial effects on the management of obesity and associated metabolic disorders. Prebiotics are defined as “indigestible food ingredients fermented by gut microbes, that serve as a substrate that is selectively utilized by host microorganisms conferring a health benefit”. However, recent attempts at increasing knowledge of intestinal microbiota have opened the door for novel prebiotic foods such as polyphenols, minerals or vitamins, polyunsaturated fatty.

Preclinical and clinical studies have reported the benefits of prebiotics in combatting obesity and metabolic abnormalities, through various mechanisms of action. However, the results are inconsistent and further studies, to correct conclusions are required. Moreover, the definition of prebiotics has been expanded to non-carbohydrate compounds, and our knowledge on the possible effects of these compounds on modulating dysbiosis process, and consequently, management of obesity and related metabolic abnormalities is still in infancy. Hence, further, properly designed animal and human trials are needed to evaluate whether non-carbohydrate compounds can confer health benefits on the host by modulating gut microbiota composition.

Personalized nutrition and precision medicine are beginning to influence the application of prebiotics, with growing interest in the modulation of microbial signatures of health and disease. There is evidence that microbial signatures are unique to individuals. Hence, due to the complexity of obesity pathogenesis, the need for further and in-detailed studies on the role of modulation of microbial signatures in the management of obesity and metabolic comorbidities (e.g., diabetes mellitus, fatty liver, and metabolic syndrome) are warranted.

This Research Topic aims to contribute to filling the gap in the knowledge about the role of prebiotic in preventing/treating obesity-related metabolic abnormalities.

Another issue that still needs clarification is an assessment of several non-carbohydrates, including micronutrients for modulating the intestinal microbiota aiming at alleviating the parameters associated with the development of metabolic disorders.

Here, we especially welcome studies that advance our knowledge on the impact of novel prebiotic foods and food ingredients on the prevention and treatment of obesity-associated metabolic disorders.
We hope that more detailed investigations would be conducted to confirm the efficacy of modulation of microbial signatures for the management of obesity and associated metabolic disorders and help develop promising approaches to better substantiate the health benefits required for market approval.

In this Research Topic, we welcome the submission of original research, review, or systematic review, and opinion that includes, but is not limited to, the following sub-topics/areas:

• The possible role of both “true” prebiotics” and “novel” ones - either individually or in combination - in cellular, molecular, psychological, physiological behavioral aspects of obesity and associated metabolic disorders both in preclinical and in clinical studies.
• Evaluation of efficacy of prebiotic food ingredients through safety studies conducted with clinical trials.
• Preoperative and postoperative assessment of oral supplementation with prebiotics in patients who have undergone bariatric surgery,
• Evaluating the impact of supplementation with prebiotics on weight regain after either bariatric surgery or a diet-induced loss

Keywords: weight management, obesity, microbiota, weight regain, prebiotics

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