Food contains several components that are essential for health. Dietary fibres are nondigestible foods that play an important role in the maintenance of health. Nondigestible carbohydrates are an important constituent of the diet. Intestinal immunity is the bedrock of host health and holistic health maintained by nutrition and the existence of the host supported by immunity. The gastrointestinal immune barrier is exposed to the environment or food, and immunity is maintained by several factors. Dietary fibres exert molecular effects through the production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and gut microbiota. Dietary fibres and microbial communities secrete metabolites that have the potential to regulate intestinal immunity. The gastrointestinal immune barrier is a primary target for dietary fibre metabolites, and these molecules exert a signalling effect on immune cells in the intestine. In the proposed chapter, we will discuss the molecular impact of dietary fibers on intestinal immunity and how innate immune response and gut microbiota are regulated by metabolites.
Part of the book: Immunology of the GI Tract