Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2025 Apr 2;64(4):144.
doi: 10.1007/s00394-025-03660-7.

Effects of combined prebiotic fiber supplementation and weight loss counseling in adults with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: a randomized controlled trial

Shyamchand Mayengbam  1 , Maitreyi Raman  2   3 , Jill A Parnell  4 , Bertus Eksteen  5 , Jennifer E Lambert  6 , Lindsay K Eller  6 , Alissa C Nicolucci  6 , Michelle L Aktary  6 , Raylene A Reimer  7   8
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Effects of combined prebiotic fiber supplementation and weight loss counseling in adults with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: a randomized controlled trial

Shyamchand Mayengbam et al. Eur J Nutr. .

Abstract

Purpose: Our aim was to examine the effects of combined prebiotic fiber supplementation and weight loss counseling on liver fat, body composition, subjective appetite, serum metabolomics, and intestinal microbiota in adults with MASLD.

Methods: In a double blind, placebo-controlled trial, adult participants aged 18-70 years old with MASLD were randomized to receive prebiotic (oligofructose-enriched inulin, 16 g/day; n = 22) or isocaloric placebo (maltodextrin; n = 20) for 24 weeks alongside weight loss counseling from a registered dietitian. Primary outcomes were change in intrahepatic fat % (IHF%) and hepatic injury from baseline to 24 weeks. Secondary outcomes included body composition, subjective appetite, serum lipids and cytokines, fecal microbiota, and serum metabolomics.

Results: At baseline, participants had IHF of 14.4 ± 8.4%. The change in IHF from baseline to 24 weeks did not differ between prebiotic and placebo. Prebiotic participants had a greater decrease (p = 0.029) in percent trunk fat compared to placebo. Compared to placebo, prebiotic significantly decreased desire to eat and hunger ratings over the course of the intervention. Fecal microbiota analysis showed a significant increase in Bifidobacterium abundance with prebiotic. A pathway analysis based on untargeted serum metabolomics revealed a downregulation of taurine and hypotaurine metabolism in the placebo group which was conserved in the prebiotic group.

Conclusion: Adding prebiotic fiber supplementation to weight loss counseling for adults with MASLD enhanced reductions in trunk fat and had a beneficial effect on subjective appetite compared to placebo. Improvements in fecal microbial profile and taurine metabolism revealed specific beneficial effects of prebiotics in the management of MASLD.

Clinical trial registration: Clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT02568605.

Keywords: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease; Metabolomics; Microbiota; Oligofructose-enriched inulin; Prebiotic.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: The Conjoint Health Research Ethics Board of the University of Calgary approved the study protocol (REB14-2464). The study was registered at www.clinicaltrial.gov NCT02568605. All participants provided informed consent. Competing interests: SM, MR, JAP, BE, JEL, LKE, ACN, and MLA declare no conflict of interest. RAR has received speaker honoraria from Beneo.

References

    1. Miao L, Targher G, Byrne CD, Cao YY, Zheng MH (2024) Current status and future trends of the global burden of MASLD. Trends Endocrin Metab 35:697–707. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tem.2024.02.007 - DOI
    1. Teng ML, Ng CH, Huang DQ et al (2023) Global incidence and prevalence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Clin Mol Hepatol 29:S32–S42. https://doi.org/10.3350/cmh.2022.0365 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Golabi P, Paik JM, AlQahtani S, Younossi Y, Tuncer G, Younossi ZM (2021) Burden of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in Asia, the Middle East and North Africa: data from global burden of disease 2009–2019. J Hepatol 75:795–809. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhep.2021.05.022 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Younossi ZM, Marchesini G, Pinto-Cortez H, Petta S (2019) Epidemiology of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis: implications for liver transplantation. Transplantation 103:22–27. https://doi.org/10.1097/tp.0000000000002484 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Vilar-Gomez E, Martinez-Perez Y, Calzadilla-Bertot L et al (2015) Weight loss through lifestyle modification significantly reduces features of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. Gastroenterology 149:367–378. https://doi.org/10.1053/j.gastro.2015.04.005 - DOI - PubMed

Publication types

Associated data