Sodium Butyrate

Biological Activity

Sodium butyrate is the sodium salt of butyric acid, used in the culture of mammalian cells. Sodium butyrate inhibits most HDAC except class III HDAC and class II HDAC6 and -10. Sodium butyrate also is the most effective fatty acid in stimulating or repressing the expression of specific genes. Sodium butyrate induces p21 mRNA expression in an immediate-early fashion, through transactivation of a promoter cis-element(s) located within 1.4 kb of the transcriptional start site, independent of p53 binding. Sodium butyrate significantly extends survival in a dose-dependent manner, improves body weight and motor performance, and delays the neuropathological sequelae in the R6/2 transgenic mouse model of Huntington's disease (HD). Sodium butyrate also increases histone and specificity protein-1 acetylation and protects against 3-nitropropionic acid neurotoxicity.

Conversion of different model animals based on BSA (Value based on data from FDA Draft Guidelines)

Species	Mouse	Rat	Rabbit	Guinea pig	Hamster	Dog
Weight (kg)	0.02	0.15	1.8	0.4	0.08	10
Body Surface Area (m2)	0.007	0.025	0.15	0.05	0.02	0.5
Km factor	3	6	12	8	5	20

Animal A (mg/kg) = Animal B (mg/kg) multiplied by	Animal B Km
	Animal A Km

For example, to modify the dose of resveratrol used for a mouse (22.4 mg/kg) to a dose based on the BSA for a rat, multiply 22.4 mg/kg by the K_m factor for a mouse and then divide by the K_m factor for a rat. This calculation results in a rat equivalent dose for resveratrol of 11.2 mg/kg.

Chemical Information

References

Review article: the role of butyrate on colonic function.
Hamer HM, et al. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2008 Jan 15;27(2):104-19. PMID: 17973645.

Inhibition of histone deacetylase activity by butyrate.
Davie JR. J Nutr. 2003 Jul;133(7 Suppl):2485S-2493S. PMID: 12840228.

The effect of sodium butyrate on histone modification.
Sealy L, et al. Cell. 1978 May;14(1):115-21. PMID: 667928.