Butyric acid

from source

C4H8O2 · 88.11 g/mol

butanoic acid · Buttersaeure · ethylacetic acid · Kyselina maselna

What is Butyric acid?

The smell of vomit and rancid butter, and also the compound your gut bacteria make from fiber to feed the cells lining your colon. Found in cheese. from source

CategoryFood & flavor

Chemical familyCarboxylic Acids

LeaderboardsBiggest Deadliest

Fig. 1 · 2D structure RDKit

SMILESCCCC(=O)O

Where you'll find it

Cheesewhat else is in it →

Curated by MoleculeFinder from source

The dose makes the poison inferred

A reported rat oral LD50 for Butyric acid is 8,790 mg/kg, the dose lethal to half the animals tested. Scaled by body mass alone:

your weight154 lb

615.3 g

a median lethal dose scaled to 154 lb (615,300 mg)

“The dose makes the poison” is a cross-species estimate shown as neutral science, not a threshold anyone should act on. Real toxicity depends on the person, not body mass alone.

Toxicity & hazards

Toxicity · LD50

8,790 mg/kg · very low toxicity · LD50 rat oral from source

The dose lens above scales this to a body weight.

2 more reported values

800 mg/kgLD50 · iv · mouse
3,180 mg/kgLD50 · other · mouse

DangerCorrosiveToxicIrritantHealth hazardH227, H302, H311, H314, H318, H371from source

Keep roaming

Where Butyric acid leads

Sources & methodology

PubChem CID: 264
Wikidata: Q193213
Structure: PubChem → RDKit
LD50: PubChem
Similar molecules: MoleculeFinder fingerprint similarity
Everyday relationships: MoleculeFinder editorial curation
Data refreshed: October 19, 2026

How MoleculeFinder sources and labels its data