The diet‐derived short chain fatty acid propionate improves beta‐cell function in humans and stimulates insulin secretion from human islets in vitro

Abstract

Our results indicate that propionate has beneficial effects on β-cell function in vivo, and in vitro analyses demonstrated that it has direct effects to potentiate glucose-stimulated insulin release and maintain β-cell mass through inhibition of apoptosis. These observations support ingestion of propiogenic dietary fibres to maintain healthy glucose homeostasis.