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Functional Food Ingredients in Immunity Improvement

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Bioactives and Nutraceuticals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 649

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Quality Management and Technology (DIP), School of Sciences & Technology (SST), Hellenic Open University, Parodos Aristotelous 18, 26335 Patras, Greece
Interests: antioxidants; functional foods ingredients; public health; nutritional evaluation; natural product extracts; probiotics and prebiotics; quality-safety of foods
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Functional food ingredients have gained increasing attention as important modulators of human health, particularly due to their potential in enhancing immune function. These bioactive compounds—including vitamins, minerals, polyphenols, peptides, polysaccharides, fatty acids, and probiotics—exert their effects through multiple biological pathways. They can modulate gut microbiota composition, exhibit anti-inflammatory properties, and influence both innate and adaptive immune responses by regulating immune-related signaling mechanisms. As chronic inflammation and immune-related disorders become more prevalent, the role of diet and functional foods in maintaining immune homeostasis is of growing scientific and public interest.

This Special Issue for IJMS aims to present recent advances in the identification, characterization, and utilization of functional food ingredients with immunomodulatory activity. We invite researchers, scientists, and industry experts from food, nutritional, and health sciences to share their expertise and contribute to this Special Issue.

Dr. Prodromos Skenderidis
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • functional food ingredients
  • bioactive compounds
  • health potentials
  • food processing and immunomodulation
  • green extraction techniques
  • molecular mechanisms
  • nutritional immunology
  • dietary intervention

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

23 pages, 1033 KB  
Review
Functional Food Ingredients Enhancing Immune Health
by Irene Skenderidou, Stefanos Leontopoulos and Prodromos Skenderidis
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(17), 8408; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26178408 - 29 Aug 2025
Viewed by 523
Abstract
Functional foods enriched with bioactive compounds—including vitamins, minerals, polyphenols, probiotics, fatty acids, and amino acids—have gained growing attention due to their ability to modulate immune responses. This review aims to summarize and critically evaluate evidence from both preclinical and clinical studies on the [...] Read more.
Functional foods enriched with bioactive compounds—including vitamins, minerals, polyphenols, probiotics, fatty acids, and amino acids—have gained growing attention due to their ability to modulate immune responses. This review aims to summarize and critically evaluate evidence from both preclinical and clinical studies on the immunomodulatory effects of these compounds. A structured literature search was performed across major scientific databases in accordance with PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Seventy studies met the predefined eligibility criteria and were included. Evidence indicates that functional ingredients support immune function via antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and microbiome-mediated pathways. Clinical trials further report benefits including a reduced risk of respiratory infections and enhanced vaccine responses. Nonetheless, important challenges remain regarding bioavailability, inter-individual variability, and the long-term safety of supplementation. Emerging research on precision nutrition and innovative delivery systems may further enhance the efficacy of these bioactive compounds. Overall, functional foods and nutraceuticals show strong potential as adjunct strategies for maintaining immune health; however, further well-designed clinical studies are required to confirm their translational applicability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Food Ingredients in Immunity Improvement)
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