Single Dose of EpiCor Yeast Postbiotic Triggers Rapid, Selective Anti-Inflammatory Cytokine Changes in Healthy Adults
核心洞察
A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial in 30 healthy adults found a single 500-mg dose of the yeast-derived postbiotic EpiCor (搜索) rapidly modulated inflammatory cytokines within 1–3 hours.
IFN-γ and IL-1ra fell significantly at 1 hour, while IL-4, IL-7, and IL-8 declined significantly at 2 hours, with downward trends for IL-1β, IL-5, and TNF-α.
The changes reflected targeted modulation of specific inflammatory pathways rather than broad immune suppression, accompanied by transient redistribution of CD25-positive immune cell subsets.
A single oral dose of the yeast-derived postbiotic fermentate EpiCor (搜索) produced rapid, selective changes in inflammatory cytokines and immune surveillance markers in healthy adults, according to a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial published in Frontiers in Nutrition. The study, conducted at NIS Labs and funded by Cargill, Inc. (搜索) (the manufacturer of EpiCor), found that significant reductions in key pro-inflammatory cytokines occurred within one to three hours of ingestion, suggesting the supplement may act as an acute nutritional modulator of immune signaling.
Study Design and Population
The trial enrolled 30 healthy adults aged 18–60 years with a body mass index (BMI) between 18 and 30 kg/m². Participants consumed either a single 500-mg dose of EpiCor (搜索)—a fermentate of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (baker's yeast)—or a rice-flour placebo at two separate clinic visits, separated by a one-week washout period. Blood samples were collected at baseline and at 1, 2, and 3 hours post-consumption.
Circulating immune cell subsets and their membrane expression of the activation markers CD25 and CD69 were evaluated by flow cytometry, while serum samples were tested for a broad panel of 27 cytokines, chemokines, and growth factors. The study was registered on clinicaltrials.gov (identifier NCT05819424) and received ethical clearance from the Argus Independent Review Board in Tucson, Arizona.
Rapid and Selective Cytokine Modulation
Compared with placebo, EpiCor (搜索) consumption induced statistically significant reductions in several inflammatory biomarkers. At 1 hour, interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) and IL-1ra levels were significantly reduced (p ≤ 0.05). At 2 hours, IL-4, IL-7, and IL-8 were significantly decreased (p ≤ 0.05), alongside trends toward reduced IL-1β, IL-5, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (搜索) (TNF-α), and a trend toward reduced granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) at 1 hour (all p ≤ 0.1).
The authors emphasized that these effects reflected "targeted modulation of specific inflammatory markers rather than uniform downregulation of immune activity." The changes to IL-8 followed a linear relationship, with levels rising on placebo days in line with normal circadian variation but decreasing linearly after EpiCor (搜索) consumption. IFN-γ and IL-1β changes followed a quadratic pattern, underscoring the transient nature of the response.
Immune Cell Trafficking and CD25 Expression
Consuming a single dose of EpiCor (搜索) also triggered changes in circulating immune cells, characterized by altered proportions of CD25-positive cells. While changes in overall immune cell numbers did not reach statistical significance across all measures, selective changes in the percentage of CD25-positive natural killer T (NKT) cells and non-NK non-T cells were observed, reaching statistical trends at 2 hours (p < 0.08) and 3 hours (p < 0.1), respectively. The changes to CD25-positive non-NK non-T cells were statistically significant for a quadratic relationship (p < 0.05).
In a subgroup analysis of 27 participants with comparable CD25 expression, changes to CD25 expression reached statistical significance for monocytes and non-NK non-T cells for a quadratic relationship (p < 0.05). In contrast, only minor changes were observed for CD69 expression, suggesting "immune alertness occurred without widespread early activation."
Proposed Mechanism Remains a Hypothesis
The authors proposed that the rapid onset of cytokine modulation is consistent with involvement of vagal signaling and neuro-immune cell units (NICUs) at the gut mucosa. They noted that non-invasive transcutaneous vagal nerve stimulation has been linked with rapid downregulation of IFN-γ and IL-8, consistent with the current findings. However, they stressed that "the trial was not designed to directly test these mechanisms, meaning the proposed gut-vagus pathway remains a hypothesis."
The selective nature of the response was highlighted by the absence of pan-suppression across the broad chemokine panel, with IL-8 (CXCL8) emerging as the only chemokine to show statistically significant reduction compared to placebo at 2 and 3 hours.
Limitations
The study has several limitations acknowledged by the authors. The population was restricted to healthy adults, and the study evaluated only short-term changes over a 3-hour period following a single dose. Outcomes were limited to circulating biomarkers and did not include clinical endpoints or direct measures of gut function. The authors called for further research, including documentation of EpiCor (搜索)'s effects on isolated NICUs in vitro and direct evidence for the role of the vagus nerve in the rapid systemic effects, both in healthy individuals and in participants with inflammatory conditions.