Butyricicoccus

Key Enzymes and Virulence Factors#

Butyricicoccus is not pathogenic. Its significance is entirely beneficial. Butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase—Key enzyme in the butyrate biosynthesis pathway via the acetyl-CoA route.

Butyrate kinase—Terminal enzyme in the butyrate kinase pathway for butyrate production.

Short-chain fatty acid production—Butyrate is the primary metabolic output, serving as the preferred energy source for colonocytes and a potent anti-inflammatory signaling molecule.

Conditions Associated#

Colorectal cancer—Depleted in CRC patients across multiple studies. In a systematic review of microbial markers for colorectal neoplasia, butyrate-producing taxa including Butyricicoccus are consistently reduced in tumor-bearing patients (,^{[2]A Systematic Review of Microbial Markers for Risk Prediction of Colorectal NeoplasiaYu L, Zhao G, Wang L et al. · 2022Open reference 2 ↓} systematic-review-meta-analysis).

Multi-omic profiling confirms depletion of butyrate producers in CRC with corresponding enrichment of pathogenic taxa like Fusobacterium nucleatum and Bacteroides fragilis (,^{[3]Multi-omic profiling reveals associations between the gut microbiome, host genome and transcriptome in patients with colorectal cancerShaomin Zou, Chao Yang, Jieping Zhang et al. · 2024Open reference 3 ↓} cross-sectional, n=41).

Multiple sclerosis—Altered in the oral microbiome of relapsing-remitting MS patients, with MS showing a broad shift away from Gram-positive early colonizers toward Gram-negative pathobionts (,^{[1]Multiple Sclerosis Patients Exhibit Oral Dysbiosis with Decreased Early Colonizers and Lower Hypotaurine LevelRachel L. Fitzjerrells, Leeann Aguilar Meza, Meeta Yadav et al. · 2025Open reference 1 ↓} case-control, n=100).

Inflammatory bowel disease—Reduced as part of the general loss of butyrate-producing Firmicutes in IBD.

Key Studies#

^{[2]A Systematic Review of Microbial Markers for Risk Prediction of Colorectal NeoplasiaYu L, Zhao G, Wang L et al. · 2022Open reference 2 ↓} (systematic-review-meta-analysis)—Comprehensive review identifying butyrate-producing taxa including Butyricicoccus as consistently depleted CRC biomarkers across 45 observational and 30 prediction studies.

^{[3]Multi-omic profiling reveals associations between the gut microbiome, host genome and transcriptome in patients with colorectal cancerShaomin Zou, Chao Yang, Jieping Zhang et al. · 2024Open reference 3 ↓} (cross-sectional, n=41)—Multi-omic study confirming depletion of butyrate producers in CRC; identifies metabolic pathway enrichments in tumor microenvironment.

^{[1]Multiple Sclerosis Patients Exhibit Oral Dysbiosis with Decreased Early Colonizers and Lower Hypotaurine LevelRachel L. Fitzjerrells, Leeann Aguilar Meza, Meeta Yadav et al. · 2025Open reference 1 ↓} (case-control, n=100)—Documents oral microbiome alterations in MS including shifts in Butyricicoccus and related taxa.