This book provides a comprehensive overview of metabonomics and gut microbiota research from molecular analysis to population-based global health considerations. The topics include the discussion of the applications in relation to metabonomics and gut microbiota in nutritional research, in health and disease and a review of future therapeutical, nutraceutical and clinical applications. It also examines the translatability of systems biology approaches into applied clinical research and to patient health and nutrition. The rise in multifactorial disorders, the lack of understanding of the molecular processes at play and the needs for disease prediction in asymptomatic conditions are some of the many questions that system biology approaches are well suited to address. Achieving this goal lies in our ability to model and understand the complex web of interactions between genetics, metabolism, environmental factors and gut microbiota. Being the most densely populated microbial ecosystem on earth, gut microbiota co-evolved as a key component of human biology, essentially extending the physiological definition of humans. Major advances in microbiome research have shown that the contribution of the intestinal microbiota to the overall health status of the host has been so far underestimated. Human host gut microbial interaction is one of the most significant human health considerations of the present day with relevance for both prevention of disease via microbiota-oriented environmental protection as well as strategies for new therapeutic approaches using microbiota as targets and/or biomarkers. In many aspects, humans are not a complete and fully healthy organism without their appropriate microbiological components. Increasingly, scientific evidence identifies gut microbiota as a key biological interface between human genetics and environmental conditions encompassing nutrition. Microbiota dysbiosis or variation in metabolic activity has been associated with metabolic deregulation (e.g. obesity, inflammatory bowel disease), disease risk factor (e.g. coronary heart disease) and even the aetiology of various pathologies (e.g. autism, cancer), although causal role into impaired metabolism still needs to be established. Metabonomics and Gut Microbiota in Nutrition and Disease serves as a handbook for postgraduate students, researchers in life sciences or health sciences, scientists in academic and industrial environments working in application areas as diverse as health, disease, nutrition, microbial research and human clinical medicine.

The Food Forum convened a public workshop on February 22-23, 2012, to explore current and emerging knowledge of the human microbiome, its role in human health, its interaction with the diet, and the translation of new research findings into tools and products that improve the nutritional quality of the food supply. The Human Microbiome, Diet, and Health: Workshop Summary summarizes the presentations and discussions that took place during the workshop. Over the two day workshop, several themes covered included: The microbiome is integral to human physiology, health, and disease. The microbiome is arguably the most intimate connection that humans have with their external environment, mostly through diet. Given the emerging nature of research on the microbiome, some important methodology issues might still have to be resolved with respect to undersampling and a lack of causal and mechanistic studies. Dietary interventions intended to have an impact on host biology via their impact on the microbiome are being developed, and the market for these products is seeing tremendous success. However, the current regulatory framework poses challenges to industry interest and investment.

Drawing on expert opinions from the fields of nutrition, gut microbiology, mammalian physiology, and immunology, Diet-Microbe Interactions for Human Health investigates the evidence for a unified disease mechanism working through the gut and its resident microbiota, and linking many inflammation-related chronic diet associated diseases. State of the art post-genomic studies can highlight the important role played by our resident intestinal microbiota in determining human health and disease. Many chronic human diseases associated with modern lifestyles and diets — including those localized to the intestinal tract like inflammatory bowel disease and celiac disease, and more pervasive systemic conditions such as obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease — are characterized by aberrant profiles of gut bacteria or their metabolites. Many of these diseases have an inflammatory basis, often presenting with a chronic low-grade systemic inflammation, hinting at persistent and inappropriate activation of inflammatory pathways. Through the presentation and analysis of recent nutrition studies, this book discusses the possible mechanisms underpinning the disease processes associated with these pathologies, with high fat diets appearing to predispose to disease, and biologically active plant components, mainly fiber and polyphenols, appearing to reduce the risk of chronic disease development. - One comprehensive, translational source for all aspects of nutrition and diet's effect on gastrointestinal health and disease - Experts in nutrition, diet, microbiology and immunology take readers from the bench research (cellular and biochemical mechanisms of vitamins and nutrients) to new preventive and therapeutic approaches - Clear presentations by leading researchers of the cellular mechanisms underlying diet, immune response, and gastrointestinal disease help practicing nutritionists and clinicians (gastroenterologists, endocrinologists) map out new areas for clinical research and structuring clinical recommendations

Metabolomics is a multidisciplinary science used to understand the ways in which nutrients from food are used in the body and how this can be optimised and targeted at specific nutritional needs. Metabolomics as a Tool in Nutrition Research provides a review of the uses of metabolomics in nutritional research. Chapters cover the most important aspects of the topic such as analysis techniques, bioinformatics and integration with other 'omic' sciences such as proteomics and genomics. The final chapters look at the impact of exercise on metabolomic profiles and future trends in metabolomics for nutrition research.

Now in a revised second edition, Nutrigenomics and Proteomics in Health and Disease brings together the very latest science based upon nutrigenomics and proteomics in food and health. Coverage includes many important nutraceuticals and their impact on gene interaction and health. Authored by an international team of multidisciplinary researchers, this book acquaints food and nutrition professionals with these new fields of nutrition research and conveys the state of the science to date. Thoroughly updated to reflect the most current developments in the field, the second edition includes six new chapters covering gut health and the personal microbiome; gut microbe-derived bioactive metabolites; proteomics and peptidomics in nutrition; gene selection for nutrigenomic studies; gene-nutrient network analysis, and nutrigenomics to nutritional systems biology. An additional five chapters have also been significantly remodelled. The new text includes a rethinking of in vitro and in vivo models with regard to their translatability into human phenotypes, and normative science methods and approaches have been complemented by more comprehensive systems biology-based investigations, deploying a multitude of omic platforms in an integrated fashion. Innovative tools and methods for statistical treatment and biological network analysis are also now included.

This book explores the potential role of prebiotics, probiotics, and synbiotics in managing various metabolic disorders, chronic diseases, and metabolic syndromes. The initial chapter provides an overview of metabolic disorders, including their classification, symptoms, and underlying causes. Additionally, the chapter discusses the intricate signaling pathways and mechanisms through which prebiotics, probiotics, and synbiotics interact with the human body in relation to type-2 diabetes, obesity, Phenylketonuria, and Hemochromatosis. Additionally, the book highlights the potential impact of probiotics and synbiotics on oxidative stress, inflammation, lipid metabolism, and blood pressure. Furthermore, this book focuses on the gut-brain axis and how synbiotics may influence neurotransmitter metabolism. With an emphasis on the gut-microbiota axis, this book presents a compelling narrative that explores the rationality behind synbiotic use and offers a glimpse into future perspectives for managing metabolic disorders effectively. This book is intended for researchers in the fields of nutraceuticals, nanomedicine, endocrinology, nutrition, gastroenterology, and metabolic medicine who are working in the field of probiotics, prebiotics, and symbiotics for the treatment of metabolic disorders.

Thousands of different microbial species colonize the human body, and are essential for our survival. This book presents a review of the current understanding of human microbiomes, the functions that they bring to the host, how we can model them, their role in health and disease and the methods used to explore them. Current research into areas such as the long-term effect of antibiotics makes this a subject of considerable interest. This title is essential reading for researchers and students of microbiology.