Abstract
The prevalence of asthma is increasing, but the cause remains under debate. Research currently focuses on environmental and dietary factors that may impact the gut-lung axis. Dietary fibers are considered to play a crucial role in supporting diversity and activity of the microbiome, as well as immune homeostasis in the gut and lung. This review discusses the current state of knowledge on how dietary fibers and their bacterial fermentation products may affect the pathophysiology of allergic asthma. Moreover, the impact of dietary fibers on early type 2 asthma management, as shown in both pre-clinical and clinical studies, is described. Short-chain fatty acids, fiber metabolites, modulate host immunity and might reduce the risk of allergic asthma development. Underlying mechanisms include G protein-coupled receptor activation and histone deacetylase inhibition. These results are supported by studies in mice, children and adults with allergic asthma. Fibers might also exert direct effects on the immune system via yet to be elucidated mechanisms. However, the effects of specific types of fiber, dosages, duration of treatment, and combination with probiotics, need to be explored. There is an urgent need to further valorize the potential of specific dietary fibers in prevention and treatment of allergic asthma by conducting more large-scale dietary intervention trials.
Highlights
With an understanding of the importance of microbe-immune-system interactions in earlylife development of the immune system and tolerance to harmless antigens, it can be hypothesized that any disruptions to early-life microbial exposure may result in potentially persistent immune abnormalities and increase susceptibility to allergic disease later in life
This review provides an overview of the current state of knowledge on how dietary fibers and their bacterial fermentation products may affect the pathophysiology of allergic asthma
The second way via which short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) influence immune function is by acting as inhibitors of histone deacetylase (HDAC), which modify the epigenome through chromatin remodeling [80]
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Numerous hypotheses have been set forth that link the rising incidence and prevalence of allergic asthma and other immune disorders with environmental changes, including urbanization, housing, and diet Such changes are assumed to affect early life immune development and maturation and to contribute to the sharp increase in asthma incidence [3]. With an understanding of the importance of microbe-immune-system interactions in earlylife development of the immune system and tolerance to harmless antigens, it can be hypothesized that any disruptions to early-life microbial exposure may result in potentially persistent immune abnormalities and increase susceptibility to allergic disease later in life Consistent with this hypothesis, some studies have found an association between disturbances in early life microbiome composition and diversity and an increased risk of allergic asthma in young children [8,20], while other studies have been less clear on asthma but more clear on atopy and allergic rhinitis [21]. We focus on how dietary fibers protect against disease development and improve symptom control of type 2 asthma, as shown in pre-clinical and clinical studies
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