You’ve heard of prebiotics, but what are postbiotics?

You’ll have heard of pre- and pro-biotics, and possibly include them in your daily regimen. Prebiotics provides nutrients to the host microorganism, and probiotics are live microorganisms that confer a health benefit. It is well known that populations of microorganisms on the skin, in the mouth or gut, can be modified using these different types of biotics. But how much do you know about postbiotics?

Postbiotics are a preparation of inanimate microorganisms and/or their components that confers a health benefit on the host. Postbiotics may contain intact inanimate microbial cells, microbial cell fragments, and/or metabolites produced during the fermentation process.

Their inanimate nature offers advantages in terms of stability, safety, ease of storage and handling, especially in animal feed and food supplements (where heat and environmental stress can degrade probiotic viability).

Postbiotics are very interesting for the animal health and nutrition sector as they offer the opportunity to support the gut environment and potentially reduce the need for medical attention and antimicrobial therapy.

Reducing antimicrobial use is an ongoing trend, aimed to lower antibiotic resistance in humans. Antibiotic growth promoters are banned in the European Union, and best practice dictates that removing non-therapeutic use of antibiotics in animal protein production should be the gold standard. Increasingly, producers are seeking to work with, and optimise, gut bacteria, to overpower ‘bad’ bacteria, rather than using antibiotics to kill both ‘good’ and ‘bad’ populations.

Where did the concept of postbiotics come from?

The concept of postbiotics has its roots in human health research, where the gut microbiota’s influence on immunity and metabolism has been extensively studied.

Postbiotics influence host physiology through several mechanisms:

• Modulation of gut barrier integrity: By enhancing mucin production and tight junction proteins, postbiotics support epithelial resilience throughout the gastrointestinal tract.
• Immunomodulation: Components like peptidoglycans and lipoteichoic acids interact with pattern recognition receptors (PRRs), such as TLRs, influencing both innate and adaptive immune responses.
• Antimicrobial activity: Metabolites such as lactic acid and various secondary metabolites inhibit pathogenic bacteria.
• Microbiome modulation: Though non-living, postbiotics can alter microbial community dynamics indirectly, for example by suppressing pathogens or promoting beneficial species via competitive exclusion.

Postbiotics’ origin in human health and adaptation into veterinary science underscores both their versatility and relevance. The logical next step is their adaptation into livestock nutrition, where the growing demand for antibiotic alternatives and gut health optimization provides opportunity for the development of postbiotics, such as dsm-firmenich’s GutServ® Biotix.

GutServ® Biotix: all about gut resilience

GutServ® Biotix is a next generation postbiotic solution that supports gastrointestinal health and resilience. It works by re-enforcing gut barrier integrity, positive microbiome modulation, preventing pathogen adhesion, and has supporting immunomodulatory capabilities..

It’s multifaceted approach targets gut barrier function, microbiota balance, pathogen exclusion, and supportive immune modulation. GutServ® Biotix strengthens gut resilience and maximizes gastrointestinal functionality.

Diving deeper, GutServ® Biotix’s efficacy stems from the bioactive compounds derived from heat-inactivated Limosilactobacillus fermentum and Lactobacillus delbrueckii, delivered in a stabilized form for maximum flexibility and impact.

Proven efficacy

• Effectiveness does not depend on the viability of bacterial cells
• Postbiotics components are released in their active form
• Ready to operate once they reach the gastrointestinal tract

Convenient application

• Heat-stable: Long shelf life, no refrigeration needed
• Flexible delivery: Available in both concentrated and diluted forms for feed or water applications,
• Can be used during antibiotic therapy
• Concentrated and diluted forms available

Safe by design

• Uses GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) and QPS (Qualified Presumption of Safety) strains
• Free from antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes
• Cannot translocate to the bloodstream from intestine lumen
• Registered in human applications

Provides support against e. coli and salmonella

Further in vitro studies conducted by the Adare Biome team (now part of dsm-firmenich) provide strong evidence that GutServ® Biotix delivers targeted, functional benefits at the gut level. These studies demonstrated the product’s ability to adhere to intestinal epithelial cells and inhibit the adhesion and internalization of key pathogens such as E. coli and Salmonella – two of the most significant bacterial pathogens in animal protein production, with significant implications for animal health, productivity, and food safety.