Butyric Acid Increases Amount of Treg Cells in the Gut

A recent  research conducted by RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences found that butyric acid, a by-product of fiber digesting bacteria which lives in the gut of humans, can actually boost the immune system. According to an article published on Science Daily, the butyric acid - a fatty acid- accomplishes this by epigenetically causing immature T- cells in our gut to mature into Treg cells.

Moreover, scientists have found that people who have a deficiency of butyric acid in their gut are more susceptible to and often do suffer from inflammatory bowel diseases.
Clearly this is a great discovery for not only the science community, but also for those who suffer from this disease. Because of the knowledge gained as a result of this research, we can understand the causes of inflammatory bowel diseases and also work towards treating them.