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Foods
Special Issues
The Link Between Food Intake, Gut Microbiota and Human Health
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The Link Between Food Intake, Gut Microbiota and Human Health

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Nutrition".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 October 2026 | Viewed by 957

Editors

Prof. Dr. Alberto Cepeda Sáez

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Guest Editor
Food Hygiene, Inspection and Control Laboratory, University of Santiago de Compostela, Campus Lugo, University Campus, Lugo, Spain
Interests: analytical chemistry; functional foods; human nutrition; gut microbiota; metabolomics; foodomics; gene expression
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Jose M. Miranda

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Food Hygiene, Inspection and Control Laboratory, University of Santiago de Compostela, Campus Lugo, University Campus, Lugo, Spain
Interests: microbioma; viroma; functional foods; human nutrition; gut microbiota; metabolomics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Alexandre Lamas

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Food Hygiene, Inspection and Control Laboratory (LHICA-USC), Department of Analytical Chemistry, Nutrition and Bromatology, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Campus Terra, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela (USC), 27002 Lugo, Spain
Interests: microbioma; viroma; functional foods; human nutrition; gut microbiota; metabolomics.functional foods; food-borne pathogens; microbiota; metabolomics; genomics; lipomics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are launching this edition where our interest is to address the impacts of diet–gut microbiota interactions on human health, considering various nutritional, regulatory, metabolic, physiological aspects and those that involve how different diets and, in general, different ways of eating affect the composition of the intestinal microbiota and how this relationship influences the appearance or development of non-communicable diseases (NCDs).

In this Special Issue, we extend an invitation to the scientific community to submit their latest advances in the knowledge of the complex interactions between gut microbiota and health. Manuscripts describing the effects of bioactive compounds, as well as food ingredients and nutrients, on the different microbial populations in the human gut are welcome. Furthermore, the effects of eubiosis-altering agents, as well as dysbiosis-correcting agents—such as prebiotics, probiotics, symbiotics, or postbiotics—are of great interest for this Special Issue.

Research articles and reviews focused on the following topics are of particular interest to this Special Issue:

  • Food components that can alter the human intestinal microbiota.
  • Nutritional strategies: use of prebiotics, probiotics, postbiotics, and dietary bioactive compounds, in restoring gut microbiota balance.
  • The role of gut microbiota and physical activity in maintaining overall human health and preventing NTDs

Prof. Dr. Alberto Cepeda Sáez
Dr. Jose M. Miranda
Dr. Alexandre Lamas
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • gut microbiota
  • probiotics
  • postbiotics
  • prebiotics
  • non-communicable diseases (NCDs)
  • dietary compounds
  • dysbiosis
  • intestinal metatranscriptomics
  • intestinal metabolomics
  • intestinal metaproteomics

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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21 pages, 5020 KB  
Article
Lactiplantibacillus plantarum P133, a Folate-Producing Probiotic, Ameliorates Cardiac Injury in Hyperhomocysteinemia Mice by Modulating Gut Microbiota and Serum Metabolome
by Wen Dai, Tiantian Jia, Yuanxing Wang and Hengyi Xu
Foods 2026, 15(12), 2088; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15122088 - 9 Jun 2026
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Abstract
Hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy) constitutes a significant risk factor for cardiovascular disease. The present study examined the cardioprotective effects and underlying mechanisms of the folate-producing strain Lactiplantibacillus plantarum (L. plantarum) P133, isolated from traditional fermented pickled vegetables, in a murine model of HHcy [...] Read more.
Hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy) constitutes a significant risk factor for cardiovascular disease. The present study examined the cardioprotective effects and underlying mechanisms of the folate-producing strain Lactiplantibacillus plantarum (L. plantarum) P133, isolated from traditional fermented pickled vegetables, in a murine model of HHcy induced by a methionine-choline-deficient diet. The findings revealed that administration of P133 significantly reduced serum homocysteine concentrations and improved cardiac function, as evidenced by decreased serum cardiac enzymes (AST, LDH, Ctnt, Ctni), mitigated myocardial histopathological damage, and lowered oxidative stress levels (e.g., decreased MDA). Mechanistically, P133 appears to provide dual protective effects: firstly, it functions as an intrinsic source of folate, thereby mitigating disturbances in one-carbon metabolism; secondly, it influences the composition of the gut microbiota, significantly enhancing the prevalence of beneficial taxa such as Muribaculaceae, and modifies the serum metabolomic profile by increasing favorable metabolites like indoleacetic acid, which correlate strongly with attenuated cardiac injury. These synergistic effects are associated with attenuated cardiac injury. Therefore, L. plantarum P133 emerges as a promising probiotic candidate for the prevention and treatment of cardiac damage related to HHcy via a multifaceted intervention approach. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Link Between Food Intake, Gut Microbiota and Human Health)
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Review

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25 pages, 5759 KB  
Review
Fruits, Vegetables, and Legumes: Harnessing the Gut-Kidney Axis in Hypertensive Chronic Kidney Disease
by Maya Agustin, Edwin Hadinata, Dante Saksono Harbuwono, Hanselian Trixie, Antonello Santini and Fahrul Nurkolis
Foods 2026, 15(16), 2938; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15162938 - 21 Aug 2026
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Abstract
Hypertension is the most common comorbidity in chronic kidney disease (CKD), affecting roughly 80–85% of patients overall and an even higher proportion in nondialysis CKD G3–G5. This narrative review examines whether, and under what clinical conditions, fruits, vegetables, and legumes can be used [...] Read more.
Hypertension is the most common comorbidity in chronic kidney disease (CKD), affecting roughly 80–85% of patients overall and an even higher proportion in nondialysis CKD G3–G5. This narrative review examines whether, and under what clinical conditions, fruits, vegetables, and legumes can be used safely in adults with hypertensive CKD, especially nondialysis CKD G3–G5, as well as moderate to severe loss of kidney function, paying close attention to the gut microbiota, short-chain fatty acids, gut-derived uremic toxins, potassium bioavailability, and modifiable clinical risk factors. The clinical effect of plant foods on serum potassium cannot be predicted from total potassium content alone. The Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) 2024 guidelines explicitly advise individualized potassium management and emphasize limiting foods rich in bioavailable potassium, especially processed foods, rather than reflexively restricting fruits and vegetables. Across CKD studies, the association between dietary potassium and serum potassium is weak or inconsistent, and the risk of hyperkalemia is modified by kidney function, bowel function, metabolic acidosis, diabetes and hyperglycemia, medications, food processing, and the food matrix itself. Potassium bioavailability varies substantially according to the food matrix, preparation method, portion size, and processing method; some minimally processed plant foods may provide less readily absorbable potassium than potassium-rich processed foods, juices, or potassium additives. Fruits, vegetables, and legumes also provide fiber, resistant starch, and polyphenols that can support saccharolytic fermentation, short-chain fatty acid production, bowel transit, and lower concentrations of some gut-derived uremic toxins. However, blood-pressure and kidney-outcome benefits in CKD are supported more strongly by observational and selected alkali-diet trials than by large microbiome-focused randomized studies. In hypertensive CKD, fruits, vegetables, and legumes should not be universally restricted simply because they contain potassium. A safer and more evidence-aligned strategy is individualized, food-source-aware prescribing that prioritizes minimally processed plant foods, accounts for preparation method and portion size, corrects constipation and acidosis, reviews potassium-raising medications and additives, and monitors serum potassium according to baseline risk. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Link Between Food Intake, Gut Microbiota and Human Health)
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