1: Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2003 Sep;6(5):581-6.  

Prebiotics: actual and potential effects in inflammatory and malignant colonic
diseases.

Delzenne N, Cherbut C, Neyrinck A.

School of Pharmacy, Universite Catholique de Louvain, UCL-PMNT 7369, 73 Avenue
Mounier, B-1200 Brussels, Belgium. delzenne@pmnt.ucl.ac.be

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: This paper will summarize the most recent clinical and
experimental data on the effects of prebiotics in inflammatory and cancerous
diseases of the large intestine. RECENT FINDINGS: Animal studies, as well as
data obtained in in-vitro cell culture systems, have underlined the potential of
certain prebiotics to protect against inflammatory and cancerous processes in
the large intestine. Clinical trials are now in progress to assess the relevance
of these promising results. The biochemical mechanisms are still incompletely
deciphered, but both the promotion of lactic acid-producing bacteria and the
production of short-chain fatty acids, particularly butyrate, during the
fermentation of prebiotics could be key factors. SUMMARY: Enteric resident
bacteria are involved in inflammatory bowel diseases and may contribute to
colonic carcinogenesis. Dietary manipulation of the flora may thus represent a
useful aid to prevent or to treat these diseases, and this could be a place for
prebiotics. Inulin-like prebiotics have shown encouraging results in animal
models, but clinical and epidemiological trials are necessary to define their
efficacy in humans. In the next few years, important advances are expected in
understanding the interactions between prebiotics, intestinal flora and the
colonic mucosa in health and diseases, enabling the improvement of therapy as
well as better nutritional handling of susceptible individuals.

PMID: 12913677 [PubMed - in process]