As our understanding of host gut microbiome increases, research interests in the fields of
prebiotics, probiotics and synbiotics are growing rapidly. Currently, the majority of
prebiotics in the markets are derived from non-digestible oligosaccharides. Very few
investigations have been focused on non-digestible long chain complex carbohydrates/
polysaccharides for their potential as novel prebiotics. One of the reasons behind this is the
unavailability of non-digestible polysaccharides that can fulfill the criteria as prebiotics.
Beta-glucans that exist as non-digestible polysaccharides derived from different food
sources have demonstrated not only health promoting effects, but also the potential as a
novel source of prebiotics. This review commences with the current trends in the research
fields of prebiotics, probiotics and synbiotics. This is followed by a discussion of the
potential of long chain beta-glucans to serve as novel prebiotics based on current
knowledge on their sources, preparation, fermentation characteristics, and the plausible
mechanisms involved in their utilization. Some future research directions with emphasis
on new approaches using molecular biology, genetics and genomics are also discussed