The Human Microbiome Project is using next-generation sequencing and metagenomics to characterize microbial communities that inhabit our gastrointestinal tract and other body sites [1, 2]. Based on these efforts, it is becoming increasingly clear that commensal microbiota play a significant role in shaping human health and disease. Yet it will be necessary to identify important microbial metabo...

The expression of metallothionein genes (MT-I and MT-II) was shown to be enhanced within 2 h of addition of 2.5-5 mM sodium butyrate to cultures of teratocarcinoma cells. Both undifferentiated stem cells (F9 and OC15) and differentiated cells (PSA5E and OC15 END) reacted similarly to butyrate by increased accumulation of MT mRNAs. As expected, all of the teratocarcinoma cells that were tested a...

Butyrate, formed by bacterial fermentation of plant foods, has been suggested to reduce colon cancer risks by suppressing the proliferation of tumor cells. In addition, butyrate has been shown to induce glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) in tumor cell lines, which may contribute to the detoxification of dietary carcinogens. We hypothesize that butyrate also affects biotransformation in non-trans...

We report here that butyrate, a naturally occurring fatty acid commonly used as a nutritional supplement and differentiation agent, greatly enhances the efficiency of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell derivation from human adult or fetal fibroblasts. After transient butyrate treatment, the iPS cell derivation efficiency is enhanced by 15to 51-fold using either retroviral or piggyBac transposo...

Although short-chain fatty acid (SCFA)-induced heat shock protein 25 (Hsp25) is associated with increased cellular resistance to injury, withdrawal of lumenal butyrate in vivo is associated with intestinal epithelial injury and apoptosis. Recognizing that SCFA-dependent posttranslational modification of Hsp25 may involve altered Hsp25 phosphorylation, we hypothesized that butyrate regulates Hsp...

Butyrate-producing bacteria have recently gained attention, since they are important for a healthy colon and when altered contribute to emerging diseases, such as ulcerative colitis and type II diabetes. This guild is polyphyletic and cannot be accurately detected by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Consequently, approaches targeting the terminal genes of the main butyrate-producing pathway have been ...

We describe a new degenerate real-time PCR approach to simultaneously quantify phylogenetically different butyrate-producing bacteria based on the detection of butyryl-coenzyme A (CoA) CoA transferase genes. This pathway is present in numerically important groups of butyrate producers within the human colon, and thus this assay estimates the butyrate-producing ability of the microbiota.

Desulfobacterium cetonicum 480 oxidized butyrate to 1 mol of acetate and 2 mol of CO2; this reaction was coupled to reduction of sulfate to sulfide. Butyrate was activated by coenzyme A (CoA) transfer from acetyl-CoA, and butyryl-CoA was oxidized to acetyl-CoA by a classical beta-oxidation pathway. Acetyl-CoA was oxidized through the acetyl-CoA/carbon monoxide dehydrogenase pathway. There was a...

Short-chain fatty acids, generated in colon by bacterial fermentation of dietary fiber, protect against colorectal cancer and inflammatory bowel disease. Among these bacterial metabolites, butyrate is biologically most relevant. GPR109A is a G-protein-coupled receptor for nicotinate but recognizes butyrate with low affinity. Millimolar concentrations of butyrate are needed to activate the recep...

BACKGROUND Treatment of shigellosis in rabbits with butyrate reduces clinical severity and counteracts the downregulation of cathelicidin (CAP-18) in the large intestinal epithelia. Here, we aimed to evaluate whether butyrate can be used as an adjunct to antibiotics in the treatment of shigellosis in patients. METHODS A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group designed cli...