Functional Reconstruction of the Gut Microecosystem in Gastrointestinal Motility Disorders: Roles of Probiotics, Prebiotics, Synbiotics and Postbiotics.

Authors

Chen Jiang, Kan Wang, Ying Yao

Published in

Probiotics and antimicrobial proteins. Jun 15, 2026. Epub Jun 15, 2026.

Abstract

Gastrointestinal motility disorders (GIMDs) are prevalent conditions with heterogeneous symptoms and limited long term therapeutic efficacy. Increasing evidence indicates that gut dysbiosis contributes to the development and persistence of these disorders by impairing mucosal barrier function, inducing low-grade inflammation, and disrupting signaling within the enteric nervous system and the gut brain axis. Consequently, microbiota targeted interventions including probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, and postbiotics have attracted growing interest. This review summarizes recent advances across these four microecological strategies and integrates mechanistic insights relevant to multiple motility phenotypes. Probiotics regulate gastrointestinal motility through strain specific mechanisms involving reshaping of microbial communities and metabolic outputs, reinforcement of barrier integrity, modulation of immune inflammatory responses, and regulation of enteric neural and neuroendocrine pathways. Prebiotics selectively promote beneficial bacteria such as Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus and increase the production of short chain fatty acids, thereby optimizing the intestinal microenvironment to support motility recovery. Synbiotics combine microbial strains with fermentable substrates to accelerate ecological restoration and often provide broader benefits on intestinal transit, barrier function, and neuroimmune regulation. Postbiotics enable targeted interventions independent of live colonization by directly influencing metabolism, barrier homeostasis, immune signaling, and smooth muscle function. Despite promising evidence, clinical translation is challenged by patient heterogeneity, variable study design, and limited comparative trials. Future research should emphasize mechanism driven precision strategies supported by multi omics stratification and rigorously designed multicenter randomized studies.

PMID:
42295597
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 15 Jun 2026.

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