The intestinal microbiota is a community of microorganisms that subsists within the
gastrointestinal ecosystem. In human health, the role of the gastrointestinal microbiota is to
maintain a dynamic balance with the host. This balance plays both local and remote roles
in critical physiological processes, particularly inflammation, and the immune response [1].
Natural polysaccharides are polymeric carbohydrate macromolecules and sources of
fermentable dietary fiber. Polysaccharides are the most abundant dietary components in
the gut microbiota and are deeply involved in host health [2]. Emerging evidence shows the
involvement of polysaccharides in numerous functions in gut microbiota-host symbiosis,
such as microbial interactions with endogenous host glycans, and the key role of microbial
polysaccharides [3]. Additionally, bacterial polysaccharides act as immunomodulators, and
host-derived polysaccharides protect host cells from pathogenic microbial neighbors and
affect overall gut health through interactions with gut microbes. The growth of certain
beneficial intestinal bacteria can be promoted by polysaccharides (among other things)
during intestinal fermentation, changing the microbiota profile of the gut and altering both
local and remote host physiology, which can reduce disease development [3,4]