By Kristina Campbell, science writer It’s not an uncommon scene in a pharmacy: someone standing in front of the shelf of probiotic products, picking up various bottles and reading the labels, looking uncertain. The person’s doctor may have recommended a certain brand of probiotic to prevent diarrhea with a prescribed course of antibiotics—but they’ve just […]
By Mary Ellen Sanders PhD, Executive Science Officer, ISAPP On the heels of the most recent ISAPP consensus paper – this one on postbiotics – ISAPP sponsored a webinar for industry members titled Probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, postbiotics and fermented foods: how to implement ISAPP consensus definitions. This webinar featured short presentations outlining definitions and key […]
This year, ISAPP established a prize for early career researchers with the goal of recognizing individuals who contribute substantial research findings in the fields of probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, postbiotics and fermented foods. The criteria for this award included evidence of impact through citizenship, general outreach and citations, as well as a dissertation with novel contributions […]
By Mary Ellen Sanders, PhD, ISAPP Executive Science Officer Glenn Gibson – co-founder and backbone of ISAPP for over 20 years – has retired from the ISAPP board of directors. In 1999, Glenn, Irene Lenoir-Wijnkoop and I conceived of ISAPP as a scientific ‘home’ for the multidisciplinary scientists involved in probiotic and prebiotic research. In […]
ISAPP has existed since 2002. At the time of incorporating the organization, founding board member Prof. Gregor Reid designed ISAPP’s original logo, which has served the organization well for the past 20 years. But ISAPP board members recently agreed that a new look was desirable to reflect the growth and evolution of the organization. A […]
ISAPP announces an open registration mini-symposium on the human mycobiome. Although the contribution of the intestinal microbiome in human physiology is well-studied, the specific role of intestinal fungi, the gut mycobiome, is not well understood. Yet they may play an important role in shaping host development and health. For example, the evidence that fungi are […]
By Dr. Mary Ellen Sanders, PhD, ISAPP Executive Science Officer ISAPP has long recognized the importance of precise definitions of the ‘biotic’ family of terms. As a scientific organization working to advance global knowledge about probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, postbiotics and fermented foods, we believe carrying out rigorous scientific studies—and comparing one result to another—is more […]
By Marla Cunningham, Metagenics Global R&D Innovation Manager and 2021 ISAPP Industry Advisory Committee representative Let’s assume a hypothetical clinical study has been published with positive impacts of a yoghurt containing Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus strain XYZ in children with atopic dermatitis. If the strain is now to be incorporated into a fruit drink, at the clinically […]
A key characteristic of a probiotic is that it remains alive at the time of consumption. Yet scientists have known for decades that some non-living microorganisms can also have benefits for health: various studies (reviewed in Ouwehand & Salminen, 1998) have compared the health effects of viable and non-viable bacteria, and some recent investigations have […]
From longtime family pets to ‘pandemic puppies’, dog ownership is seemingly more popular than ever. In households with children, scientists have found that a pet dog is one of the environmental factors that influences the gut microbiota in early life – but can the microbes that children and dogs share be modified? A new study […]
By Prof. Hania Szajewska, MD, Department of Paediatrics, The Medical University of Warsaw, Poland The scientific literature on probiotics is growing rapidly, with newly published studies continually adding to the sum of information about the probiotic strains that confer health benefits in specific populations. In research, we make hypotheses. Eventually, they are resolved by collecting […]
For dietitians, it’s often difficult to find practical, up-to-date resources with a scientific perspective on probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics and fermented foods. ISAPP is pleased to announce a new resource to fill this need – a Special Continuing Education Supplement in Today’s Dietitian titled, “Evidence-based use of probiotics, prebiotics and fermented foods for digestive health”. This […]
Evidence on the health benefits of gut-targeted ‘biotics’ – probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, and postbiotics – has greatly increased over the past two decades, but it can be difficult to sort through the thousands of studies that exist today to learn which of these ingredients are appropriate in which situations. At a recent World of Microbiome […]
By Mary Ellen Sanders and Colin Hill We all suffered a devastating loss this past Saturday with the death of Prof. Todd Klaenhammer, aged 69. Todd was a larger-than-life figure in the scientific field of genetics of lactic acid bacteria. Todd’s 38-year career started at the age of 26, when he joined North Carolina State […]
By Daniel J. Merenstein, MD, Professor, Department of Family Medicine and Director of Research Programs, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington DC Specifying a placebo is one of the most important decisions for a clinical trialist. The first trial I led was a study giving Benadryl to kids to see if it helped them sleep. We […]
By Marla Cunningham, Metagenics Global R&D Innovation Manager and 2021 ISAPP Industry Advisory Committee representative As anyone connected with probiotics and prebiotics knows – there’s a lot happening in this space. After a well-attended discussion group at the 2019 ISAPP Annual Meeting in Antwerp, a collaboration of 16 industry and academic scientists came together to […]
By Eamonn M M Quigley, MD FRCP FACP MACG FRCPI MWGO Lynda K and David M Underwood Center for Digestive Disorders, Houston Methodist Hospital and Weill Cornell Medical College, Houston, Texas Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is one of the most common gastrointestinal disorders and seems to be prevalent across the globe1. Although non-fatal, IBS impacts on […]
Benjamin Franklin, born in 1706, was a multi-talented politician and scientist best known for his discoveries related to electricity. Historians say he was scientifically pragmatic—aiming not just to advance theories, but to solve the most vexing problems of the day. In 1780, when Franklin read about the intellectual contests being held by The Royal Academy […]
Numerous misunderstandings and questions exist around the concept of fermented foods. For example: If a food does not contain live microorganisms, can it still be a fermented food? Should the live microbes in fermented foods be called probiotics? Do fermentation microbes colonize the human gut? The first step in answering these questions is for scientists […]
La Asociación Científica Internacional para Probióticos y Prebióticos (ISAPP, por sus siglas en inglés), ha estado trabajando en colaboración con la Sociedad de Enterocolitis Necrotizante (NEC Society) en el desarrollo de una infografía sobre el rol de los probióticos en la prevención de la Enterocolitis Necrotizante (ECN). La ECN es una enfermedad intestinal que puede […]
By Dr. Chris Cifelli, Vice President of Nutrition Research, National Dairy Council, Rosemont IL, USA What about added sugar in fermented or probiotic foods? I am almost always asked this question whenever I give a nutrition presentation, no matter the audience. It’s not a surprising question as people care about what they eat and, often, […]
By Prof. Maria Marco, Department of Food Science and Technology, University of California Davis, USA The COVID-19 pandemic has been a sobering reminder of the significance that microorganisms have on human life. Despite the tremendous scientific and medical advances of the twentieth century, our best precautions against the virus have been to practice the oldest […]
By Prof. Maria Marco, Department of Food Science and Technology, University of California Davis, USA A panel of scientific experts was recently convened by ISAPP to discuss the state of knowledge on fermented foods. While there was much agreement on the underlying microbiological processes and health-related properties of those foods and beverages, our conversation on […]
By Prof. Bob Hutkins, PhD, University of Nebraska Lincoln, USA Quick, which country consumes the most yogurt? Must be France? Or the Netherlands? Maybe Turkey? The United States, perhaps? Try none of the above: the answer is China. While many other countries consume way more yogurt than China on a per capita basis, China’s population […]
By Silvia Bañares, PhD in commercial law, attorney Barcelona Bar Association, Spain; and Miguel Gueimonde, Departamento de Microbiología y Bioquímica de Productos Lácteos, IPLA-CSIC, Villaviciosa, Asturias, Spain. The word ‘probiotic’ has been absent from food products in most countries in Europe for years. Authorities there concluded that the word is an implied health claim, which is […]
