| Background & objectives: There is a direct relationship between the presence of beneficial
microbiota in the gut, development immune system functions and maintenance homeostasis.
Hence, the consumption of foods or supplements with postbiotic components has been
characterized as one of the most important strategies to modify the microbiome balance and
improve the health status of the host. In this study, the concept of postbiotics and their clinical
role in host health has been reviewed.
Methods: All articles related to the study subject were searched in the Scopus,
PubMed/Medline, ISI Web of Knowledge, and Google Scholar database and studies that
examined the effects of postbiotics on diseases were included.
Results: According to available evidences, postbiotics do not need the viability in comparison
with their parent cells and they exert health effects like live probiotic cells. Also, their
preparation and application in various delivery system is affordable, which this highlights the
importance of postbiotics from technological, clinical and economic aspects. These
compounds have biological activities including immunomodulation, antimicrobial, antiinflammatory,
anti-oxidant and anti-proliferation, and they can play an important role in
modulating the immune system's performance, improving therapies and reducing their
possible side-effects in some cases of gastrointestinal disorders and chronic diseases.
Conclusion: The postbiotics as a novel strategy can be used in a wide range of
pharmaceutical products for the preventive therapy and improvement of the current
therapeutic methods, as well as in food products to delay corruption, increase shelf life, and
promote functional foods. |