ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Nutr.
Sec. Nutrition and Microbes
Tributyrin (CoreBiome®) enhances butyrate levels and modulates the gut microbiota, barrier function, and immune response in vitro
Provisionally accepted
- 1ProDigest (Belgium), Ghent, Belgium
- 2CMET, University of Ghent, Gent, Belgium
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Background/Objectives: Oral butyrate is unstable during upper gastrointestinal tract (GIT) transit and very little reaches the colon. Tributyrin, a butyrate precursor, resists gastric acid and is converted to butyrate by pancreatic lipases. This study aimed to quantify tributyrin stability during upper GIT passage and to uncover the effects of tributyrin supplementation on the human gut microbiome and host-microbiome interactionscellular responses. Methods: In vitro upper GIT simulations were used to evaluate the stability of a capsule and softgel formulation of tributyrin (CoreBiome®). The effects of tributyrin supplementation on the human gut microbiome and host-microbiome interactionscellular responses were evaluated using the Simulator of the Human Intestinal Microbial Environment (SHIME®) model and Caco-2/THP1 co-cultures. Results: The upper GIT simulations showed that 40.9% and 48.7% of the tributyrin dose administered via the capsule or softgel, respectively, was metabolized hydrolyzed to butyrate in the small intestine; 59.1% and 51.3% remained stable and was available to enter the colon. Using the SHIME® model, it was shown that three weeks of daily tributyrin supplementation had a butyrogenic effectincreased butyrate levels and enhanced the abundance of several bacterial species, including Bifidobacterium spp and Akkermansia mucinophila. Metabolic impacts on the gut microbiome were also observed. Assessment of host-microbiome interactionscellular responses revealed that tributyrin fermentation had a protective effect on the intestinal barrier and exerted immunomodulatory properties. Conclusions: Butyrogenic effectsEnhanced butyrate concentrations and beneficial impacts on the gut microbial community composition were observed in an in vitro simulation of the human intestinal environment, suggesting that tributyrin could be considered as a solid alternative to butyrate supplementation.
Keywords: Butyrate, Gut barrier integrity, Immunomodulation, gut microbiome, Postbiotic, SHIME, Tributyrin
Received: 25 Sep 2025; Accepted: 27 Oct 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Duysburgh, Verstrepen, Van Meulebroek and Marzorati. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Massimo Marzorati, massimo.marzorati@prodigest.eu
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