Prebiotics are short chain carbohydrates that are non-digestible by digestive enzymes in humans and selectively enhance the activity of some groups of beneficial bacteria. In the intestine, prebiotics are fermented by beneficial bacteria to produce short chain fatty acids. Prebiotics also render many other health benefits in the large intestine such as reduction of cancer risk and increase calcium and magnesium absorption. Prebiotics are found in several vegetables and fruits and are considered functional food components which present significant technological advantages. Their addition improves sensory characteristics such as taste and texture, and enhances the stability of foams, emulsions and mouthfeel in a large range of food applications like dairy products and bread. This contribution reviews bioactives from food sources with prebiotic properties. Additionally, food application of bioactive prebiotics, stimulation of the viability of probiotics, health benefits, epidemiological studies, and safety concerns of prebiotics are also reviewed.

a b s t r a c tThe composition of bambangan peel dietary fibre (DF) and several properties related to its nutritional quality were investigated. The physicochemical properties and antioxidant capacity for the fibre-rich powder (FRP) were investigated, and the chemical composition for soluble dietary fibre (SDF) and insoluble dietary fibre (IDF) were also studied. The FRP had a high amount of total dietary fibre (TDF; 72.3 g/ 100 g FRP) with a balanced SDF/IDF ratio (46.3/53.7%). The FRP had a high glucose retardation index, water-holding capacity (WHC), oil-holding capacity (OHC), and swelling. The antioxidant capacity of the FRP, as determined by the DPPH Å assay using an Elisa reader, exhibited a strong potency due to the presence of associated total polyphenols (98.3 mg/g FRP). These FRP characteristics indicated that bambangan peels are a rich source of DF, antioxidants, and other bioactive compounds that can be incorporated with food products to improve the nutraceutical properties of these products.

The effect of a yoghurt supplement containing Bifidobacterium pseudocatenulatum G4 or Bifidobacterium longum BB536 on plasma lipids, lipid peroxidation and the faecal excretion of bile acids was examined in rats fed a cholesterol-enriched diet. After 8 weeks, the rats in the positive control (PC) group who were fed the cholesterol-enriched diet showed significant increases in plasma total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, and malondialdehyde (MDA). However, groups fed a cholesterol-enriched diet supplemented with yoghurt containing B. pseudocatenulatum G4 or B. longum BB536 had significantly lower plasma TC, LDL-C, very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) cholesterol, and MDA than had the PC group after 8 weeks of treatment. In addition, faecal excretion of bile acids was markedly increased in the rats fed the yoghurt containing B. pseudocatenulatum G4 or B. longum BB536 as compared to the PC and NC groups.