Prebiotics are regarded as the non-digestible food constituents that are selectively consumed by health-promoting bacteria (probiotics). In fact, a number of active metabolites is released due to intensive interaction between prebiotics and probiotics in the gut which exert local and systemic beneficial effects including regulation of intestinal disorders and modulation of host immunity. Turmeric is one of the most important medicinal herbaceous that is derived from Curcuma longa rhizome. Curcumin is a well-recognized component of turmeric which contributes to the prevention of multiple inflammatory diseases. Despite curcumin as a well-known compound, few researches have focused on the turmeric extract (TE) and its potential as prebiotic and anti-inflammatory compound. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prebiotic potential and some functional-structural properties of TE. The Fourier-transform-infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) spectrum of TE showed identical peaks that belonged to β configuration in pyranose and glycosidic bonds. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis revealed the presence of potent phenolic and flavonoid anti-oxidants and curcuminoids, and some functional monosaccharides. TE demonstrated excellent resistance to artificial human gastric and intestine juice compared to the standard prebiotic (inulin) (p ≤ 0.05). Interestingly, our time course experiment showed that TE not only is digested by probiotics including Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) and Bifidobacterium animalis BB12, but also supports the growth of these bacteria even after 72 h (p ≤ 0.05). To our knowledge, this is the first report evaluating prebiotic potential of TE and exploring its suppressive effects on LPS induced IL-8 production in HT29-19A cell line.

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There is a strong correlation between dysregulation of the gastrointestinal microbiota and development of allergic diseases. The most prevalent therapies for relieving asthma symptoms are associated with serious side effects, and therefore novel approaches are needed. Our objective was to elucidate whether oral administration of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) as a probiotic or turmeric powder (TP) as a prebiotic or both as a synbiotic mitigate allergic inflammation including lung function, airway inflammatory cell infiltration, Th2 cytokines/chemokine in a murine model of house dust mite (HDM)induced asthma. BALB/c mice were intranasally sensitized and challenged with HDM received TP (20 mg/Kg mouse), or/and LGG (10 5 or 10 7 cfu/ml), or both orally. Interestingly, the synbiotic intervention (HDM-TP-LGG E7) specifically suppress the developement of airway hyperresponsiveness in response to methacholine. Besides, our synbiotic, TP, and LGG strongly down-regulated eosinophilia, IL-5, CCL17, IL-13. In terms of T cell response, CD4 + Th2 cells and CD4 + Th17 population were reduced in the splenocytes of the treatment groups compared to control. The synbiotic group not only elevated CD25 + Foxp3 + Treg frequency compared to asthmatic group, but also increased T reg cells compared to the probiotic group. The synbiotic also indicated the superior effect in suppressing Th2 cells compared to probiotic. Although, TP and LGG alone displayed suppressive effects, this study showed that the combination therapy consisting of TP and LGG (synbiotic) is more effective in some of the parameters than either of the treatments alone. This novel synbiotic, might be considered as a potential food-based drug for translational medicine and can possibly be used along with corticosteroid treatment.