scholarly journals Probiotic: An Uprising Human Health Concept

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amishi Bhatt ◽  
Dhyey Kothari ◽  
Charmy Kothari ◽  
Ramesh Kothari

Most of our gut microbiota live with us in a mutually beneficial life-long relationship. The gut microbiota plays a vital role in the host’s overall health through its metabolic activities. Human microbiota might be supported by consuming friendly bacteria (probiotics) and consuming foods to improve the microbiota (prebiotics). During the last two decades, probiotics’ interest has increased with rising scientific shreds of evidence of benefits on human health. Hence, they have been exploited as various food products, mainly fermented foods. Probiotics as a treatment modality may restore normal microbiota and functioning of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Strong scientific evidence is associating these bacteria with the prevention and therapy of various GI disorders. (In light of the ongoing trend of probiotics, further research is needed to obtain the perspective of potential applications for better health. Probiotic applications have been extended from health applications to food and agricultural applications. The benefits of probiotics led to its applications in probiotic ‘health food’ industries and agricultural sectors.

Author(s):  
Gordana Bojic ◽  
Svetlana Golocorbin-Kohn ◽  
Maja Stojancevic ◽  
Momir Mikov ◽  
Ljiljana Suvajdzic

The intestine habitat is the natural collection of symbiotic microorganisms. The bacterial population enables many permanent metabolic activities in this environment. Inside the intestine of mammals there are an extended genome of millions of bacterial genes named microbiome. In recent years, there has been an increased interest of scientists to discover the place and the role of bio-ecological content and modulation of gut microbiota in a host organism using prebiotics, probiotics and synbiotics, which may have a great benefit for human health.


Author(s):  
Prasat Kittakoop

Trillions of microorganisms with a complex and diverse community are in the human gastrointestinal tract. Gut microbial genomes have much more genes than human genome, thus having a variety of enzymes for many metabolic activities; therefore, gut microbiota is recognized as an “organ” that has essential functions to human health. There are interactions between host and gut microbiome, and there are correlations between gut microbiome in the healthy state and in certain disease states, such as cancer, liver diseases, diabetes, and obesity. Gut microbiota can produce metabolites from nutrients of dietary sources and from drug metabolisms; these metabolites, for example, short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), have substantial effects on human health. Drug-microbiome interactions play a crucial role in therapeutic efficiency. Some drugs are able to change compositions of gut microbiota, which can lead to either enhance or reduce therapeutic efficiency. This chapter provides an overview of roles of gut microbiota in human health and diseases and recent research studies on the metabolism or toxicity of drugs and natural products. Since gut bacteria considerably contribute to drug metabolism, research on the influence of gut microbiome on drug candidates (or natural products) should be part of the drug development processes.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lihan Wang ◽  
Jiaxin Zhang ◽  
Mengyao Zhou ◽  
Qing Chen ◽  
Xinyan Yang ◽  
...  

Symbiotic gut microbiota in early life plays a vital role in human health, and changes in its communication and function are associated with various complex disorders. In this study, we...


2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 297-301
Author(s):  
Escutia-Lopez Karina Nathalie ◽  
Sanchez Pardo Ma Elena ◽  
Rosalva Mora Escobedo

In late years there has been an increase of scientific evidence that supports the use of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni (S. rebaudiana) as an alternative to sucrose and artificial sweeteners. In addition to its utility in different industries, S.rebaudiana contains various chemical components with potential benefits for human health such as polyphenols, chlorophylls, carotenoids, among others, which can be extracted for the production of nutraceuticals and functional foods. So far no adverse effects on human health have been proven after ingestion and favorable results have been documented when S.rebaudiana or its derivates are included in treatments against diabetes, certain types of cancer, glucose intolerance, obesity, dental cavities, among others. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of the clinical, chemical and biochemical literature that presents evidence of the beneficial role of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni and its metabolites in health promotion properties, as well as its relevance in the pharmaceutical and food industries


2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lamhot P. Manalu

Crop drying is essential for preservation in agricultural applications. It is performed either using fossil fuels in an artificial mechanical drying process or by placing the crop under the open sun. The first method is costly and has a negative impact on the environment, while the second method is totally dependent on the weather. The drying process requires a lot of energy in relation to the amount of water that must be evaporated from the product. It is estimated that 12% of the total energy used by the food industries and agriculture absorbed in this process. Due to the limitation of energy resources, it is important to keep researching and developing of diversification and optimization of energy This study aims to assess the use of energy for cocoa drying using solar energy dryer and bin-type dryer, as well as to determine the drying efficiency of each type of dryer. The results showed that the efficiency of the solar dryer drying system ranges between 36% to 46%, while the tub-type dryers between 21.7% to 33.1%. The specific energy of solar dryer ranged from 6.17-7.87 MJ / kg, while the tub-type dryers 8.58-13.63 MJ / kg. Dryer efficiency is influenced by the level of solar irradiation and the amount of drying load, the higher the irradiation received and more cocoa beans are dried, the drying efficiency is also higher and the specific energy further down.Proses pengeringan memerlukan banyak energi sehubungan dengan banyaknya air yang harus diuapkan dari bahan yang dikeringkan. Pengeringan dapat dilakukan dengan menggunakan pengering mekanis berbahan bakar fosil atau dengan menempatkan produk di bawah matahari terbuka. Metode pertama adalah mahal dan memiliki dampak negatif pada lingkungan, sedangkan metode kedua sangat tergantung pada cuaca. Diperkirakan bahwa 12% dari total energi yang dipergunakan oleh industri pangan dan pertanian diserap untuk proses ini. Mengingat semakin terbatasnya sumber energi bahan bakar minyak maka usaha diversifikasi dan optimasi energi untuk pengeringan perlu terus diteliti dan dikembangkan. Salah satunya adalah pemanfaatan energi surya sebagai sumber energi terbarukan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengkaji penggunaan energi untuk pengeringan kakao dengan memakai pengering energi surya dan pengering tipe bak, serta untuk mengetahui efisiensi pengeringan dari masing-masing tipe pengering. Hasil kajian menunjukkan bahwa efisiensi total sistem pengeringan alat pengering surya berkisar antara 36% dan 46%, sedangkan pengering tipe bak antara 21.7% dan 33.1%. Kebutuhan energi spesifik alat pengering surya berkisar antara 6.17-7.87 MJ/kg, sedangkan alat pengering tipe bak 8.58-13.63 MJ/kg. Efisiensi alat pengering dipengaruhi oleh tingkat iradiasi surya dan jumlah beban pengeringan, semakin tinggi iradiasi yang diterima pengering serta semakin banyak biji kakao yang dikeringkan, maka efisiensi pengeringan juga semakin tinggi dan kebutuhan energi spesifik semakin turun.Keywords: energy, efficiency, cocoa, solar dryer, bin-type dryer.


2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (19) ◽  
pp. 3567-3583 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria De Angelis ◽  
Gabriella Garruti ◽  
Fabio Minervini ◽  
Leonilde Bonfrate ◽  
Piero Portincasa ◽  
...  

Gut microbiota, the largest symbiont community hosted in human organism, is emerging as a pivotal player in the relationship between dietary habits and health. Oral and, especially, intestinal microbes metabolize dietary components, affecting human health by producing harmful or beneficial metabolites, which are involved in the incidence and progression of several intestinal related and non-related diseases. Habitual diet (Western, Agrarian and Mediterranean omnivore diets, vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free diets) drives the composition of the gut microbiota and metabolome. Within the dietary components, polymers (mainly fibers, proteins, fat and polyphenols) that are not hydrolyzed by human enzymes seem to be the main leads of the metabolic pathways of gut microbiota, which in turn directly influence the human metabolome. Specific relationships between diet and microbes, microbes and metabolites, microbes and immune functions and microbes and/or their metabolites and some human diseases are being established. Dietary treatments with fibers are the most effective to benefit the metabolome profile, by improving the synthesis of short chain fatty acids and decreasing the level of molecules, such as p-cresyl sulfate, indoxyl sulfate and trimethylamine N-oxide, involved in disease state. Based on the axis diet-microbiota-health, this review aims at describing the most recent knowledge oriented towards a profitable use of diet to provide benefits to human health, both directly and indirectly, through the activity of gut microbiota.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xupeng Yuan ◽  
Jiahao Yan ◽  
Ruizhi Hu ◽  
Yanli Li ◽  
Ying Wang ◽  
...  

Recent evidences suggest that gut microbiota plays an important role in regulating physiological and metabolic activities of pregnant sows, and β-carotene has a potentially positive effect on reproduction, but the impact of β-carotene on gut microbiota in pregnant sows remains unknown. This study aimed to explore the effect and mechanisms of β-carotene on the reproductive performance of sows from the aspect of gut microbiota. A total of 48 hybrid pregnant sows (Landrace × Yorkshire) with similar parity were randomly allocated into three groups (n = 16) and fed with a basal diet or a diet containing 30 or 90 mg/kg of β-carotene from day 90 of gestation until parturition. Dietary supplementation of 30 or 90 mg/kg β-carotene increased the number of live birth to 11.82 ± 1.54 and 12.29 ± 2.09, respectively, while the control group was 11.00 ± 1.41 (P = 0.201). Moreover, β-carotene increased significantly the serum nitric oxide (NO) level and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity (P < 0.05). Characterization of fecal microbiota revealed that 90 mg/kg β-carotene increased the diversity of the gut flora (P < 0.05). In particular, β-carotene decreased the relative abundance of Firmicutes including Lachnospiraceae AC2044 group, Lachnospiraceae NK4B4 group and Ruminococcaceae UCG-008, but enriched Proteobacteria including Bilophila and Sutterella, and Actinobacteria including Corynebacterium and Corynebacterium 1 which are related to NO synthesis. These data demonstrated that dietary supplementation of β-carotene may increase antioxidant enzyme activity and NO, an important vasodilator to promote the neonatal blood circulation, through regulating gut microbiota in sows.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (13) ◽  
pp. 2903
Author(s):  
Jiezhong Chen ◽  
Luis Vitetta

The gut microbiota is well known to exert multiple benefits on human health including protection from disease causing pathobiont microbes. It has been recognized that healthy intestinal microbiota is of great importance in the pathogenesis of COVID-19. Gut dysbiosis caused by various reasons is associated with severe COVID-19. Therefore, the modulation of gut microbiota and supplementation of commensal bacterial metabolites could reduce the severity of COVID-19. Many approaches have been studied to improve gut microbiota in COVID-19 including probiotics, bacterial metabolites, and prebiotics, as well as nutraceuticals and trace elements. So far, 19 clinical trials for testing the efficacy of probiotics and synbiotics in COVID-19 prevention and treatment are ongoing. In this narrative review, we summarize the effects of various approaches on the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 and discuss associated mechanisms.


Author(s):  
Jie Cai ◽  
Zhongxu Chen ◽  
Wei Wu ◽  
Qinlu Lin ◽  
Ying Liang

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Guojun Wu ◽  
Naisi Zhao ◽  
Chenhong Zhang ◽  
Yan Y. Lam ◽  
Liping Zhao

AbstractTo demonstrate the causative role of gut microbiome in human health and diseases, we first need to identify, via next-generation sequencing, potentially important functional members associated with specific health outcomes and disease phenotypes. However, due to the strain-level genetic complexity of the gut microbiota, microbiome datasets are highly dimensional and highly sparse in nature, making it challenging to identify putative causative agents of a particular disease phenotype. Members of an ecosystem seldomly live independently from each other. Instead, they develop local interactions and form inter-member organizations to influence the ecosystem’s higher-level patterns and functions. In the ecological study of macro-organisms, members are defined as belonging to the same “guild” if they exploit the same class of resources in a similar way or work together as a coherent functional group. Translating the concept of “guild” to the study of gut microbiota, we redefine guild as a group of bacteria that show consistent co-abundant behavior and likely to work together to contribute to the same ecological function. In this opinion article, we discuss how to use guilds as the aggregation unit to reduce dimensionality and sparsity in microbiome-wide association studies for identifying candidate gut bacteria that may causatively contribute to human health and diseases.


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