Probiotics: Role of bioactives in foods and dietary supplements

Abstract

Bacteria in the human gut play a significant role in the host's metabolic functions. These bacteria's metabolites have an impact on the host's physiology and health. The gut flora is subjected to a multitude of environmental factors, including way of life, strain, antibiotics, host genetics, and diseases. When a disease pathogenesis occurs, the intestinal microbial composition changes which results in a diseased state. This stage is caused by bacterial pathogen colonization in the intestinal environment. Probiotic strains can be injected into the intestinal environment to treat the pathological condition. Medicinal compounds produced by probiotic strains include amino acids, vitamins, bacteriocins, enzymes, immunomodulatory compounds, and Short Chain Fatty Acids (SCFAs). This review describes latest proofs of the effect of bioactive components produced by probiotic bacteria on food and host wellbeing while having no impact on good bacteria sharing the same niche.