TITLE:
A Review on the Impact of the Plant Bioactive Compound β-Glucans as Phytochemicals for Boosting Human and Animals’ Immune Response—β-Glucans as Immunostimulants
AUTHORS:
Mirjana Menkovska, Osama Ibrahim
KEYWORDS:
β-Glucans, Source, Structure, Properties, Immunomodulation
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Bioscience and Biotechnology,
Vol.13 No.7,
July
29,
2022
ABSTRACT: The influence of food and nutrition on health and
immunity for both human and animals are being demonstrated. Phytochemicals are
natural compounds present in cereals, beans,
fruits, vegetable, and other plants, believed to enhance immune response
for both human and animals. One of these phytochemicals is β-Glucans
that are heterogeneous polysaccharides consisted of branched long chains of
D-Glucose units present in cereals such as barley, wheat, and oats, and also
present in microbial cell walls for yeasts, fungi, bacteria, and algae. β-Glucans
extracted from cereals and mushroom were investigated for their positive impact on immunomodulation for
both human and animal health. These β-Glucans
proved to enhance immune system for innate response as the first defense
against microbial infection, toxins, and self-tumor cells, and also, enhance adaptive immune that also referred to
specific immunity as the second defense in response to antigen-specific
lymphocytes against microbial infection, toxins, and self-tumor cells.