Prebiotic definition updated by ISAPP

June 16, 2017. Prebiotic definition updated by ISAPP.

ISAPP published a consensus statement updating the prebiotic concept – Expert consensus document: The International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics (ISAPP) consensus statement on the definition and scope of prebiotics. Available open access from Nature Reviews in Gastroenterology and Hepatology, this paper offers a new definition of prebiotic: a substrate that is selectively utilized by host microorganisms conferring a health benefit. The consensus panel was led by Prof. Glenn Gibson, University of Reading, co-founder and past president of ISAPP. In 1995, Prof. Gibson, along with Professor Emeritus Marcel Roberfroid, first coined the term ‘prebiotic’. This new definition embraces progress in microbiome science and prebiotic innovation.

Publication of this consensus statement is just in time for the ISAPP 2017 annual meeting, which will be held June 27-29, 2017.

ISAPP’s previous consensus statement provided clarity on the definition and scope of the term ‘probiotic’. It remains the most highly downloaded paper published by Nature Reviews in Gastroenterology and Hepatology. It has been downloaded over 35,000 times.