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A number of components present in the diet, although nutritionally nonessen-tial, have been discovered to have beneficial effects toward both general health and disease prevention/protection. One such nutrient, butyric acid, can be derived in large quantities from bacterial fementation of dietary fiber in the bowel and is also a component of bovine milk. In gut fermentation, the production of butyric acid defines its delivery point; thus, the synthesis and site of action of butyric acid are in close proximity and have frustrated the investigation of its activities in vivo. Recent research has, however, revealed a number of activities of butyric acid toward isolated cells. In particular, its ability to modify nuclear architecture and induce death by apoptosis in colon cancer cells is arousing great interest. Butyric acid changes the structure of chromatin through its effects on posttranslational modifications, key modifications being …