In the 21st century, compressive health and functional foods are advocated by increasingly more people in order to eliminate sub-health conditions. Probiotics and postbiotics have gradually become the focus of scientific and nutrition communities. With the maturity and wide application of probiotics, the safety concerns and other disadvantages are non-negligible as we review here. As new-era products, postbiotics continue to have considerable potential as well as plentiful drawbacks to optimize. “Postbiotic” has been defined as a “preparation of inanimate microorganisms and/or their components that confers a health benefit on the host”. Here, the evolution of the concept “postbiotics” is reviewed. The underlying mechanisms of postbiotic action are discussed. Current insight suggests that postbiotics exert efficacy through protective modulation, fortifying the epithelial barrier and modulation of immune responses. Finally, we provide an overview of the comparative advantages and the current application in the food industry at pharmaceutical and biomedical levels.

Evidence has revealed that oestrogen deprivation-induced osteolysis is microbiota-dependent and can be treated by probiotics. However, the underlying mechanism require further investigation. This study aims to provide additional evidence supporting the use of probiotics as an adjuvant treatment and to explore the pathophysiology of oestrogen-deprived osteolysis. Forty-five SD rats were randomly divided into five groups (n = 9). Rats from four groups were ovariectomised and treated with NS, calcium, probiotics, or calcium + probiotics, while one group underwent a sham operation and was treated with NS. The osteometabolic effects were evaluated, and the mechanistic role of the probiotic supplement was explored. Intragastric administration of Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis LPL-RH (LPL-RH) markedly suppressed osteoclastic activation and bone calcium loss by downregulating TRAP enzymatic activity, the OPG/RANKL ratio, and the downstream signalling pathway RANKL/TRAF6/NF-κB/NFATc1/TRAP in ovariectomised SD rats. LPL-RH also reduced CD4+IL-17 A+ TH17 cells in the bone marrow, the pro-osteoclastogenic cytokine IL-17 A, pro-inflammatory molecules (LPS), and its binding protein (LBP) in the blood. LPL-RH restored intestinal ZO-1, occludin, claudin 2, claudin 12, and claudin 15, which improved ileal histopathology, reduced ileal oxidative stress, and attenuated the LPS-responsive TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB pathway. Furthermore, 16 S rRNA sequencing revealed that LPL-RH altered the faecal microbiome by reducing the relative abundance of S24-7 at the family level and promoting Prevotella and Bacteroides at the genus level. Collectively, LPL-RH suppressed osteoclastogenesis and osteolysis by modulating type 17 immunity and gut microbiome.

Research Background: As the global population ages rapidly, anemia prevalence rises among older adults, yet its impact on quality of life and mortality in this group remains poorly understood. This study aimed to identify risk factors for anemia and examine its associations with quality of life and 9-year all-cause mortality among Chinese adults aged ≥60. Methods: We evaluated the determinants and consequences of anemia in 5,050 participants aged ≥ 60 from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), a prospective cohort of community-dwelling elderly individuals ≥ 45 at baseline and followed for up to 9 years. Anemia was defined according to the World Health Organization criteria. Multinomial logistic regression was performed to assess the correlation between anemia and aging. Cox proportional hazards models were used to evaluate the impact of anemia on all-cause mortality. Results: In 2011, anemia prevalence was 15.05% (95% CI, 14.00–16.06%) and increased with age. Age (OR, 1.03; 95% CI, 1.01–1.05; P < 0.01), living in rural areas (OR, 1.51; 95% CI, 1.18–1.92; P < 0.01), and hypoproliferation ((OR, 1.43; 95% CI, 1.12–1.83; P < 0.01) were positively associated with anemia.Negative associations were observed for higher hematocrit (OR, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.91–0.95; P < 0.01) , total cholesterol (OR, 1.00; 95% CI, 0.99–1.00; P = 0.03), and the creatinine clearance rate (OR, 0.99; 95% CI, 0.98–1.00; P < 0.01). During the 9 years of follow-up, 741 of the 4767 (15.54%) participants died. After adjusting for covariates, anemia remained independently associated with mortality (HR, 1.22, 95% CI, 1.02, 1.47; P=0.03) was still closely associated with mortality. Persistent anemia significantly impaired survival, and anemia was linked to reduced quality of life. Conclusion: This study revealed that anemia is prevalent among individuals aged ≥ 60 years in China and is related to age, residence type, hypoproliferation, hematocrit, total cholesterol and the creatinine clearance rate. Research has also confirmed that anemia is associated with worse overall survival in Chinese older adults.

Cytarabine (Ara-C) remains the cornerstone of induction therapy for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). However, its overall clinical efficacy is suboptimal, and