Evidence mapPaperPMID 40861839Full record

SynthesisIranian journal of medical sciences2025

The Effects of Prebiotic Dietary Fibers, Probiotics, and Synbiotics on Gut Permeability and Immunity: A Systematic Review.

Leila Maghsoumi-Norouzabad, Alireza Bagherzadeh-Karimi, Shabnam Aliakbari Majd, Leila Hosseini, Fatemeh Shahi

Abstract readSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Iranian journal of medical sciences, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Review
  3. Review
  4. Review
  5. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Leila Maghsoumi-NorouzabadTraditional Medicine and Hydrotherapy Research Center, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran.
Alireza Bagherzadeh-KarimiResearch Center for Integrative Medicine in Aging, Aging Research Institute, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
Shabnam Aliakbari MajdFood and Drug Administration, Saveh University of Medical Sciences, Saveh, Iran.
Leila HosseiniResearch Center of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
Fatemeh ShahiInfectious and Tropical Diseases Research Center, Health Research Institute, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Modulation of intestinal barrier, which function through zonulin pathway downregulation, represents a promising therapeutic strategy for chronic diseases. This systematic review aimed to evaluate the effects of prebiotic dietary fibers, probiotics, and synbiotics on intestinal permeability and immunity. Methods: A systematic literature search of the EMBASE, PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus electronic databases was conducted from database inception up to May 2024, supplemented by manual reference list searches. Included studies met the following criteria: (a) English language publications; (b) clinical trials; (c) investigated each factor of serum or fecal zonulin levels, serum or fecal calprotectin, glucagon-likepeptide-2 (GLP-2), short chain fatty acids (SCFAs), long chain fatty acids (LCFAs), fecal bile acid (BA), LPS-binding protein (LBP), lipopolysaccharide (LPS), intestinal microbiota composition, or inflammatory factors such as interleukin 6 (IL-6) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP); (d) supplemented prebiotic dietary fibers, probiotics, or symbiotics. Studies were excluded if they contained insufficient data or involved supplementation alongside other interventions. The study quality and risk of bias were assessed using Jadad's Score. Results: A total of 36 studies were included in this review. Of these, 14 articles (n=580 participants) evaluated the effect of dietary prebiotics, 18 articles (n=1502 participants) evaluated the effect of probiotics, and six articles (n=517 participants) examined the effect of synbiotics on intestinal health and immunity markers. According to the evidence presented in this study, prebiotic whole foods or food enriched with prebiotics, probiotics, and synbiotics might have favorable effects on the serum levels of zonulin as a measure of intestinal permeability. The effects on GLP-2, gut microbiota, and their metabolites (e.g., LCFAs/SCFAs and BA) were contradictory and inconclusive. Some studies indicated increased levels of Conclusion: The lack of consistent replication across studies made it difficult to draw definitive conclusions about the effects of prebiotics, probiotics, and synbiotics on gut-related health and immunity. Therefore, further evidence is required before definitive recommendations can be established.

Indexed as

Dietary FiberPrebioticsProbioticsSynbioticsGastrointestinal MicrobiomeHaptoglobinsHumansPermeabilityProtein PrecursorsDietary FiberHaptoglobinsPrebioticsProtein PrecursorszonulinInflammation mediatorsIntestinal barrier functionProbioticSynbioticZonulin

Identifiers

PMID40861839
PMCPMC12374058

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.