Entries by KC

ISAPP panel concludes that more evidence is needed to determine whether probiotics help restore an antibiotic-disrupted microbiota

/in ISAPP Science Blog

By Dr. Mary Ellen Sanders PhD, Mary Ellen Sanders LLC, Colorado, USA, Dr. Hania Szajewska MD, Medical University of Warsaw, Poland, Prof. Karen Scott PhD, Rowett Institute, University of Aberdeen, Scotland, UK From the time scientists began to understand how antibiotics disrupt the gut microbiota, questions have been raised about whether probiotics could help recovery […]

Planning a Biotics Study? New Publication Recommends Adding Diet as a Variable

/in ISAPP Science Blog

By Prof. Maria Marco PhD and Prof. Kevin Whelan PhD In studies on probiotics, prebiotics, and other biotics, the demonstrated health effect may depend on the personal characteristics and habits of the study participants. Take the following scenario: Person A and Person B consume the same prebiotic supplement. Person A typically eats a Mediterranean-style diet, […]

ISAPP Board Member Prof. Dan Merenstein MD Elected to National Academy of Medicine

/in News

A longtime ISAPP board member, Prof. Dan Merenstein MD of Georgetown University School of Medicine, has received a prestigious honor: election to the US National Academy of Medicine. With this recognition, Prof. Merenstein joins an elite group of fewer than 100 American scientists, doctors and other professionals selected each year for exceptional achievements in medicine […]

How do we know if a microbe is dead?

/in ISAPP Science Blog

By Prof. Maria Marco PhD, University of California, Davis “Kills 99.9% of bacteria and viruses.” This percentage and others like it are frequently found on disinfectant labels. Ideally, the microbicidal effect of the product is sufficient to kill more than the numbers of the target pathogen or pathogens expected to be in the environment where […]

Can Probiotics Prevent Respiratory Tract Infections in Infants and Children?

/in ISAPP Science Blog

By Prof. Hania Szajewska MD PhD, Medical University of Warsaw, Poland Imagine you are a primary care pediatrician practicing in an area where respiratory tract infections (RTIs) are particularly common during the winter months. Due to the seasonal surge in viral infections, you might find yourself seeing 20-30 children per day with upper respiratory tract […]

Discovering novel bioactive peptides in fermented foods

/in ISAPP Science Blog

By Dr. Rounak Chourasia PhD, National Agri-food Biotechnology Institute, Mohali, Punjab, India Food not only serves as a primary source of essential nutrients but also contains a wealth of potential bioactive compounds. Among these, peptides have garnered significant attention for their ability to impact health beyond basic nutrition. These short protein fragments, ranging from 2 […]

ISAPP elaborates criteria for prebiotics

/in ISAPP Science Blog

By Mary Ellen Sanders, PhD, Mary Ellen Sanders LLC, Probiotics Consulting, Prof. Bob Hutkins, PhD, University of Nebraska and Karen Scott PhD, Rowett Institute, University of Aberdeen. Nearly one in four Americans say digestive health is the most important aspect of their overall health, according to a 2022 International Food Information Council survey. Prebiotics – […]

Prebiotics: Does Delivery Format Matter?

/in ISAPP Science Blog

By Kelly S. Swanson, PhD, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, USA Prebiotics (1) have long been appreciated for their benefits to digestive function, immunity, energy balance, and metabolism. From a nutritionist’s perspective, the best way to consume dietary fibers and prebiotics is by eating a healthy diet comprising adequate amounts of whole grains, fruits, and vegetables. […]

Postbiotics: A global perspective on regulatory progress

/in ISAPP Science Blog

By Dr. Gabriel Vinderola PhD, CONICET, National University of Litoral, Argentina While the conceptualisation of postbiotics varies among scientists, some recent actions may suggest that regulatory agencies around the world are starting to align with the ISAPP definition (Salminen et al. 2021), understanding postbiotics as preparations of inanimate microorganisms able to confer a health benefit. […]

Welcoming ISAPP’s newest board member, Dr. Geoffrey Preidis MD PhD

/in News

At the 2024 annual scientific meeting in Cork, Ireland, the ISAPP board welcomed its newest member, Dr. Geoffrey Preidis MD PhD of Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital. ISAPP President Prof. Maria Marco PhD says, “We are thrilled to have Dr Preidis on our board. He is a great colleague and brings scientific […]

ISAPP Board Welcomes New President, Prof. Maria Marco PhD

/in News

At the ISAPP 2024 annual meeting in July, the ISAPP board of directors ushered in the beginning of the next leadership term, with the role of President being taken on by Prof. Maria Marco PhD from UC Davis (USA). Prof. Marco had served the previous three years as Vice President while Prof. Dan Merenstein MD […]

Can we estimate prebiotic effects from short-chain fatty acid production?

/in ISAPP Science Blog

By Prof. Kristin Verbeke PhD, KU Leuven Short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), primarily acetate, propionate and butyrate, are the most abundant anions in the large intestine. They are mainly produced from bacterial fermentation of undigested carbohydrates. Since SCFA were found to activate the orphan G-protein coupled receptors GPR-41 and 43 (renamed as free fatty acid receptor […]

Can prebiotics benefit brain health in older adults? ISAPP experts weigh in on a recent study

/in ISAPP Science Blog

With increasing age and frailty come changes in the gut microbiota – leading scientists to ask whether targeting the gut microbiota using prebiotics could contribute to healthier aging. Of particular interest is whether prebiotics have the potential to affect brain health and cognitive performance in older adults. An intervention study led by researchers at King’s […]

Should bacteriophages be considered as a member of the biotic family?

/in ISAPP Science Blog

By Prof. Colin Hill PhD DSc, University College Cork, Ireland ISAPP has provided consensus definitions for a number of biotics that confer a health benefit on the host. These include prebiotics, probiotics, synbiotics and postbiotics, but here I want to put forward an argument that bacteriophages (phages) could qualify as a new member of the […]

A guide to the new FDA Qualified Health Claim for yogurt

/in ISAPP Science Blog

Fermented foods such as yogurt, kimchi, and fermented pickles have traditionally been associated with health benefits in countries around the world, but the science that backs these health benefits is relatively new. Amidst a growing number of scientific studies examining the health benefits of specific fermented foods, a new Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announcement […]

Fermented Food Microbiology Researcher in Mohali, India Receives 2024 Gregor Reid Award for Outstanding Scholars in Developing Nations

/in News

ISAPP’s board of directors is happy to announce the 2024 winner of the Gregor Reid Award for Outstanding Scholars in Developing Nations: Dr. Rounak Chourasia PhD, a research associate at the National Agri-food Biotechnology Institute in Mohali, Punjab (India). Dr. Chourasia’s work focuses on discovering microorganisms with specific properties that contribute to the enhanced health […]

Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis Researcher in Belgium Receives ISAPP’s 2024 Glenn Gibson Early Career Researcher Award

/in News

The ISAPP selection committee for the Glenn Gibson Early Career Researcher Award is pleased to announce that Dr. Boushra Dalile PhD, a postdoctoral fellow at KU Leuven (Belgium), is the recipient of this year’s award. Dr. Dalile is a researcher who moved from studying psychology and cognitive neuroscience into biomedical sciences, completing her PhD in […]

Inaugural Sanders Award for Advancing Biotic Science Goes to Argentinian Researcher who leads YOGURITO program

/in ISAPP Science Blog

The ISAPP board of directors is pleased to share that the winner of the inaugural Sanders Award for Advancing Biotic Science is Dr. Maria Pía Taranto PhD, a researcher at the Center of Reference for Lactobacilli at the National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CERELA-CONICET) in Argentina. Dr. Taranto leads the YOGURITO program, established in […]

2023 in Review: Highlights in the Field of Biotic Science

/in ISAPP Science Blog

By Kristina Campbell, Prof. Colin Hill PhD, Prof. Sarah Lebeer PhD, Prof. Maria Marco PhD, Prof. Dan Merenstein MD, Prof. Hania Szajewska MD PhD, Prof. Dan Tancredi PhD, Prof. Kristin Verbeke PhD, Dr. Gabriel Vinderola PhD, Dr. Anisha Wijeyesekera PhD, and Marla Cunningham Biotic science is an active field, with over 6,600 scientific papers published […]

Statistical considerations for the design of randomized, controlled trials for probiotics and prebiotics

/in ISAPP Science Blog

By Prof. Daniel Tancredi, UC Davis, USA The best evidence for the efficacy of probiotics or prebiotics generally comes from randomized controlled trials. The proper design of such trials should strive to use the available resources to achieve the most informative results for stakeholders, while properly accounting for the consequences of correct and incorrect decisions. […]

New paper outlines the value of studying probiotics in the small intestine

/in ISAPP Science Blog

Even though the human digestive tract extends from the mouth down through the small and large intestines, the study of probiotics and their activities has tended to focus on the colon. While the colon (or perhaps more accurately its proxy, the faecal sample) is relatively accessible and easy to study, recently some researchers have argued […]