World J Gastroenterol. 2010 Jan 28;16(4):403-10. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v16.i4.403.
Probiotic bacteria have well-established beneficial effects in the management of diarrhoeal diseases. Newer evidence suggests that probiotics have the potential to reduce the risk of developing inflammatory bowel diseases and intestinal bacterial overgrowth after gut surgery. In liver health, the main benefits of probiotics might occur through preventing the production and/or uptake of lipopolysaccharides in the gut, and therefore reducing levels of low-grade inflammation. Specific immune stimulation by probiotics through processes involving dendritic cells might also be beneficial to the host immunological status and help prevent pathogen translocation. Hepatic fat metabolism also seems to be influenced by the presence of commensal bacteria, and potentially by probiotics; although the mechanisms by which probiotic might act on the liver are still unclear. However, this might be of major importance in the future because low-grade inflammation, hepatic fat infiltration, and hepatitis might become more prevalent as a result of high fat intake and the increased prevalence of obesity.
益生菌在腹泻病的治疗中具有良好的确切疗效。新的证据表明，益生菌有可能降低胃肠道手术后发生炎症性肠病和肠道细菌过度生长的风险。在肝脏健康方面，益生菌的主要益处可能是通过阻止肠道中内毒素的产生和/或摄取，从而降低低度炎症水平。益生菌通过涉及树突状细胞的特定免疫刺激过程，也可能有利于宿主免疫状态，并有助于防止病原体易位。肝脏脂肪代谢似乎也受到共生菌的影响，可能也受到益生菌的影响；尽管益生菌对肝脏作用的机制尚不清楚。然而，这在未来可能非常重要，因为高脂肪摄入和肥胖症的高发导致低度炎症、肝脂肪浸润和肝炎可能变得更加普遍。
