Bifidobacterium plantarum and Increased Short-Chain Fatty Acid Production

Research synthesisVery low evidenceModerate effect4 studies · 4 beneficial · 0 neutral · 0 harmful

Across 4 studies (all beneficial, 3 statistically significant), interventions involving Bifidobacterium plantarum or related strains consistently increased short-chain fatty acid production, with effect sizes predominantly moderate (3 moderate, 1 small). However, all evidence comes from in vitro or animal models (diarrheic calves), not human trials. No dose, form, or duration data were reported across studies.

Caveats: Available evidence is overwhelmingly positive — clinical literature in this area is subject to publication bias (null-result studies are less likely to be published or indexed). Additionally, all four studies are in vitro or animal models (e.g., diarrheic calves) with no direct human trial data; the interventions often used multi-strain combinations or different Bifidobacterium species, making it unclear whether Bifidobacterium plantarum alone is responsible for the observed effects.

Generated May 12, 2026

5 of 5 papers

Impact of lactic acid bacteria and Bifidobacterium intervention on pathogenic bacteria and short-chain fatty acid production in diarrheic calves: an in vitro fermentation study.
- 2026-06
- Veterinary and animal science 32
- - Yannan He
  - Jiaxing Tian
  - Junguo Liu
  - Han Lu
  - Xinfeng Hou
  - Jinping Zhang
  - Jie Gao
  - Ling Yang
  - Shijie Wang
- PubMed: 41783829
- DOI: 10.1016/j.vas.2026.100603
2 Insights on
- Increased Short-Chain Fatty Acid Production
- Low evidence
Interventions with S131 and Mix significantly increased concentrations of the health-promoting SCFAs, such as acetic acid, propionic acid and butyric acid.
Effect
Beneficial
Effect size
Moderate
Significant
Yes
Probiotic Lactic Acid Bacteria-Fermented Beverages from Bambara Groundnut and Cowpea Sprouts Modulate Gut Microbiota and Short-Chain Fatty Acids.
- 2026-03-26
- Foods (Basel, Switzerland) 15(7)
- - Nobahle Pretty Cele
  - Yusuf Olamide Kewuyemi
  - Oladipupo Adiamo
  - Eshetu Mulisa Bobasa
  - Jiale Zhang
  - Maral Seididamyeh
  - Yasmina F Sultanbawa
  - Dharini Sivakumar
- PubMed: 41976435
- DOI: 10.3390/foods15071141
1 Insight on
- Increased Short-Chain Fatty Acid Production
- Low evidence
BCL7524 produced significantly (<i>p</i> < 0.05) higher levels of hexanoate (3-14 mM) and valerate (10-15 mM), supporting chain-elongation activity within the community.
Effect
Beneficial
Effect size
Moderate
Significant
Yes
Combining Lactiplantibacillus plantarum and Bifidobacterium adolescentis can improve GABA production in faecal fermentations.
- 2026-02-14
- Journal of applied microbiology 137(3)
- - Rihua Xu
  - Melinda J Mayer
  - Mark Philo
  - Gwénaëlle Le Gall
  - Guesh Mulaw
  - Alise Ponsero
  - Arjan Narbad
- PubMed: 41689511
- DOI: 10.1093/jambio/lxag047
3 Insights on
- Increased Short-Chain Fatty Acid Production
- Low evidence
Bifidobacterium adolescentis supplementation increased short-chain fatty acids acetate and propionate
Effect
Beneficial
Effect size
Small
Probiotic combinations affect characteristics of chickpea yogurt: an investigation on physicochemical, rheological, and organoleptic properties and SCFAs fermentation.
- 2026-05
- Food chemistry 510
- - Haiyang Shi
  - Jing Luo
  - Zhexin Fan
  - Baokun Li
  - Xiaoqian Chen
  - Bingyuan Lei
  - Yingying Qiu
  - Jiancheng Wang
  - Tong Pan
  - Wenwei Lu
  - Zhifeng Fang
- PubMed: 41795525
- DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2026.148756
2 Insights on
- Increased Short-Chain Fatty Acid Production
- Low evidence
chickpea yogurts played a positive role in regulating short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) levels in vitro fecal fermentation experiments.
Effect
Beneficial
Effect size
Moderate
Significant
Yes
Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis Ca360 Promotes Oral Iron Repletion, Alters the Gut Microbiota, and Regulates Host Metabolism and Inflammatory Status in a Murine Model of Iron Deficiency Anemia Caused by a Low-Iron Diet.
- 2026-03-12
- Nutrients 18(6)
- - Peiqing Jiang
  - Jing Yang
  - Yuejian Mao
  - Linjun Wu
  - Xiaoqiong Li
  - Xiangyu Bian
  - Jian Kuang
  - Jianqiang Li
  - Fangshu Shi
  - Xiaoqiang Han
  - Jinjun Li
  - Haibiao Sun
- PubMed: 41901074
- DOI: 10.3390/nu18060900
5 Insights on
- Increased Short-Chain Fatty Acid Production
- Low evidence
- Rigorous Journal
- Animal Study
accompanied by increased acetate, propionate, and butyrate levels.
Effect
Beneficial
Effect size
Moderate

Bifidobacterium plantarum and Increased Short-Chain Fatty Acid Production

Impact of lactic acid bacteria and Bifidobacterium intervention on pathogenic bacteria and short-chain fatty acid production in diarrheic calves: an in vitro fermentation study.

Probiotic Lactic Acid Bacteria-Fermented Beverages from Bambara Groundnut and Cowpea Sprouts Modulate Gut Microbiota and Short-Chain Fatty Acids.

Combining Lactiplantibacillus plantarum and Bifidobacterium adolescentis can improve GABA production in faecal fermentations.

Probiotic combinations affect characteristics of chickpea yogurt: an investigation on physicochemical, rheological, and organoleptic properties and SCFAs fermentation.

Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis Ca360 Promotes Oral Iron Repletion, Alters the Gut Microbiota, and Regulates Host Metabolism and Inflammatory Status in a Murine Model of Iron Deficiency Anemia Caused by a Low-Iron Diet.