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Looking for information you can trust on probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, postbiotics, fermented foods and more? Check out ISAPP’s resources for a wealth of accessible, reliable information specific to the field, and search according to the format or topic you need.
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Fermented Foods and Health — Does Today’s Science Support Yesterday’s Tradition?
ISAPP and Today’s Dietitian collaborated on a free webinar in which Hannah Holscher, PhD, RD, and Jennifer Burton, MS, RD, LDN discussed the foundational elements of fermented foods, the role of microbes in fermentation, and more. -
Checklist of Cumulative Required Evidence for a Prebiotic
The aim of this checklist is to provide researchers clearly stated criteria that may assist with the scientific rationale for calling a substance ‘prebiotic’. -
Probiotics: NIH Fact Sheet for Health Professionals
This fact sheet from the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) features an overview of probiotics, with scientifically supported health indications as well as safety considerations. -
Highlighted Talks from the 2025 ISAPP Annual Meeting
In this special episode, ISAPP’s Executive Director Marla Cunningham highlights ISAPP’s annual meeting, held in Banff, Canada in July 2025. Four speakers join the podcast to describe their talks from the meeting: Episode abbreviations and links: About our speakers: Carolina Tropini, University of British Columbia, Canada Dr. Carolina Tropini is an Assistant Professor at the… -
ISAPP welcomes two new scientists to its board of directors
The ISAPP board of directors is pleased to welcome two prominent scientists and frequent ISAPP collaborators to its ranks: Prof…. -
Unraveling the functions of GLP-1 in the gut, with Dr. Thomas Greiner PhD
This episode features Dr. Thomas Greiner PhD from the University of Gothenburg (Sweden), speaking about the various functions of GLP-1 in the gut, and the role of gut microbes in GLP-1 production, with ultimate effects on host health. He noted that GLP-1 is produced by enteroendocrine cells called L-cells, both in the small intestine and… -
Archive Highlight: Microbes that break down mucus and milk to benefit the host, with Dr. Clara Belzer PhD
We discuss microbes, mucus, and milk with Dr. Clara Belzer PhD from Wageningen University in the Netherlands in this episode. Dr. Belzer, a molecular geneticist, specializes in studying the microorganisms that are equipped to break down the glycans in mucus and human milk within the host environment. Key topics from this episode: Episode abbreviations and links: About… -
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Postbiotics: a perspective on their quantification
Precise quantification is essential for measuring the dose of a postbiotic and ensuring consistency across scientific studies, but a gold standard for quantifying postbiotics does not yet exist. In this paper, 15 leading scientists from academia and industry offer globally relevant guidance for postbiotic quantification. The paper originated from a 2024 expert working group held… -
Investigating the microbial mechanisms contributing to host metabolism, with Dr. Amir Zarrinpar, MD PhD
This episode features Dr. Amir Zarrinpar, MD PhD, from UC San Diego (USA) speaking about his work on circadian biology and host metabolism, and what’s currently known about microbial mechanisms. Dr. Zarrinpar explains that in mouse models, restricting feeding to the nocturnal (awake) period is important for their metabolic and overall health. When mice eat… -
Microbiome endpoints in clinical trials for biotics – where do we stand and what have we learnt?
I’m sure you’ve read the results of trials similar to these (fictional) conclusions: ‘Our findings showed an increase in Faecalibacterium and Enterococcus, two… -
Interactions between immunity, gut microbiota, and metabolism, with Prof. Dirk Haller PhD
This episode features Prof. Dirk Haller from Technical University of Munich (Germany) speaking about his work in the field of nutritional immunology, trying to unravel how immunity and gut microbiota interact with metabolism, ultimately impacting the emergence of chronic diseases. He focuses on how microbe-host interactions in the gut impact inflammatory or tumorigenic responses –… -
Examining fermented foods for potential cardiometabolic health benefits, with Prof. Ben Willing PhD
This episode features Prof. Ben Willing PhD from the University of Alberta, Canada, speaking about his work investigating fermented foods such as kefir for potential cardiometabolic health benefits. The microorganisms associated with fermented foods are not standardized – for example, traditional kefirs have some microorganisms in common, but other microorganisms that are present sporadically. Moreover, kefir… -
Diet and gut microbiome contributions to host energy balance, with Dr. Karen Corbin PhD RD
This episode features Dr. Karen Corbin PhD RD from AdventHealth Translational Research Institute (USA), speaking about how the triad of diet, gut microbiome, and host characteristics contribute to energy balance as well as metabolic diseases. From the perspective of host physiology, she explores how to use diet to remodel the gut microbiome to impact energy… -
Progress in understanding the gut microbiome’s role in health and disease states, with Prof. Emad El-Omar MD FRCP
This episode features Prof. Emad El-Omar MD FRCP from the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, speaking about a recent paper exploring the healthy microbiome concept, as well as the latest research on how the gut microbiome contributes to the pathophysiology of several diseases. Prof. El-Omar talked about research on H. pylori-induced disease in… -
The HACK index for measuring a health-associated gut microbiome, with Dr. Tarini Ghosh PhD
This episode features computational microbiologist Dr. Tarini Ghosh PhD from Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology (Delhi, India) speaking about his recently published paper that proposes a novel Health-Associated Core Keystone (HACK) index for measuring a healthy microbiome. To create the index, the group used a huge volume of sequence data – over 201 terabytes –… -
Regulatory science and the development of microbiome biomarkers, with Dr. Céline Druart PhD
This episode features Dr. Céline Druart PhD of Pharmabiotic Research Institute (PRI) speaking about the role of regulatory science in the development of microbiome biomarkers. First, PRI’s Communication and Membership Manager Camille Bello briefly describes the work of the PRI in supporting the development of therapeutic and diagnostic products derived from microbiome science. Regulation is… -
Identifying features of a healthy microbiome, with Raphaela Joos
This episode features Raphaela Joos from University College Cork in Ireland, speaking about efforts by the Human Microbiome Action Consortium to create an expert-led consensus around the concept of a healthy human microbiome. Ms. Joos, a PhD student who was first author of the resulting paper, notes that a healthy human microbiome can be defined… -
Advancing gut microbiome testing for use in clinical practice, with Dr. Gianluca Ianiro MD PhD
In this episode, Dr. Gianluca Ianiro MD PhD speaks about how to advance gut microbiome testing for use in medicine. -
Archive Highlight: Human milk oligosaccharides in the infant gut, with Dr. Simone Renwick PhD
In this episode, the ISAPP hosts discuss human milk and the infant gut with Dr. Simone Renwick PhD from Mother-Milk-Infant Center of Research Excellence (MOMI CORE) at UC San Diego, USA. Dr. Renwick talks about her work investigating how communities of microbes versus individual microbes in the infant gut metabolize human milk oligosaccharide (HMO) structures,… -
ISAPP Board Scientist Honored by American Society for Nutrition as Inaugural Fellow
Prof. Kelly Swanson PhD from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a nutrition scientist from the ISAPP board of directors, has… -
Exploring resources to inform probiotic recommendations: New UK Probiotic Guide Released
Well-informed healthcare professionals know the importance of recommending evidence-based probiotic products to their patients to achieve specific health benefits. But… -
How a non-industrialized diet affects gut microbes and health, with Dr. Anissa Armet PhD RD
This episode features Dr. Anissa Armet PhD RD from the University of Alberta in Canada, speaking about the impact of diet on both the gut microbiota and overall health. Dr. Armet, a registered dietitian and researcher, says the Western diet along with the associated gut microbiome changes have played a role (amongst other things) in… -
How a non-industrialized diet affects gut microbes and health, with Dr. Anissa Armet PhD RD
This episode features Dr. Anissa Armet PhD RD from the University of Alberta in Canada, speaking about the impact of… -
Use of biotics in animals: impact on nutrition, health, and food production
In this review, a group of animal health experts, comprising academic and industry scientists, surveyed the evidence on biotics for both agricultural and companion animals, outlining what’s known to date and the promising directions in this scientific field. Biotics are shown to be useful for helping maintain the health and wellness of various animal species…. -
Interactions of polyphenols in the gut, with Prof. Yves Desjardins PhD
This episode features Prof. Yves Desjardins PhD from Laval University in Canada. Prof. Desjardins, an agrologist by training, explains that polyphenols are metabolites synthesized by plants and present in the plant foods we consume. When humans consume polyphenols, we absorb a small fraction (around 5%) of them in the upper gastrointestinal tract, but most of… -
The interplay between gut microbiota, diet, and circadian rhythms, with Dr. Vanessa Leone PhD
This episode features Dr. Vanessa Leone PhD from the University of Wisconsin – Madison on how gut microbes and eating patterns impact the host circadian system and overall health. In mouse models, Dr. Leone has found that in a 24-hour period, minor changes occur in the composition of the gut microbiota, while more important changes… -
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New paper summarizes current findings from global research on the vaginal microbiota
Knowledge about the vaginal microbiota is important for women’s health worldwide, but the majority of the research to date has… -
How to respond to the question “Should I take a probiotic?”
With contributions from Prof. Daniel Merenstein MD A Washington Post article published March 11, 2025 by a gastroenterologist addressed a… -
An overview of precision fermentation, with Prof. William Chen PhD
This episode features Prof. William Chen from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, speaking with the ISAPP hosts about precision fermentation. In Singapore, enhancing national food security is of interest and one of the technologies used to achieve this is precision fermentation. Prof. Chen describes the differences between traditional fermentation, biomass fermentation, and precision fermentation. In… -
ISAPP’s President Elected to the American Academy of Microbiology
The President of the ISAPP Board of Directors, Prof. Maria Marco PhD, was among the elite group of scientists elected…