Effects and Mechanisms of Probiotics, Prebiotics, Synbiotics and Postbiotics on Intestinal Health and Disease

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Background

The human gut is a complex ecosystem where microbiota, nutrients, and host cells interact extensively, and plays a crucial role in the gut homeostasis and host development. Once gut microbes imbalanced, it will enhance the risk of specific diseases due to impairment of the gut microbiota. The close relationships within gut microbiota, health and disease have attracted great interest in the introduction of probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics and postbiotics into human diet. These food supplements termed as functional foods is favorable for the intestinal microbiota because they can alter, modify and reinstate the pre-existing intestinal flora to intervene some diseases.
Nowadays, the supplementation with probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics and postbiotics is increasingly being used for digestive diseases as adjunctive therapy including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), necrotizing enterocolitis and acute infectious diarrhea. Validation of the mechanism of action of them on intestinal health effects is of great importance.

Intestinal tract is the largest reservoir of microbes in the human body, and the use of probiotics has been investigated extensively in intestinal disorders. This topic focuses on the effects of probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics and postbiotics on intestinal health. In particular, a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the beneficial effects of probiotics on the cell infection is popularly adopted. Functional genes of probiotics involved in probiotic action can be validated by using molecular biological techniques. Using intestinal epithelial cell and mouse models, the cross-talk between host and microbes as well as the genetic networks can be revealed through multi-omics analyses including metagenomics, transcriptomics, and metabolomics.

Probiotics are beneficial to intestinal health through the maintenance of the gut homeostasis – the dynamic and healthy interactions between host and gut microbiota. Prebiotics are traditionally non-digestible food ingredients that selectively stimulate the growth and activity of certain bacteria in the digestive tract. Synbiotics are the combination of prebiotics and probiotics, while postbiotics are functional bioactive compounds including microbial cells, cell constituents and metabolites, which confers a health benefit on the host. They are popularly used for both the prevention and treatment of a variety of gut diseases as adjunctive therapy through a feasible route of dietary supplementation. The potential molecular mechanism underlying how probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics and postbiotics improve intestinal health deserve to be deeply investigated. Understanding the interaction of probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, postbiotics and gut microbiota contributes to provide new insights into gut disease as well as new therapeutic approaches to cure infectious diseases.

Keywords: Probiotics, Lactobacillus, Probiotic function, Health benefits, Gut microbiota, Intestinal homeostasis, Intestinal immunity, Pathogenesis, Anti-bacteria, Intestinal health and disease

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