BodyBio’s butyrates are simply butyrate, a thirteen-atom complex joined to an alkali. Butyric acid, butyrate and tributyrin are ingredients you may see in this category of supplements. Same purpose, different characteristics. We use butyric acid aka butanoic acid, a short chain fatty acid with four carbon atoms at its heart (found in butter, hence its name). As an acid, it has a low pH so we compound it with an alkali, a combination that forms a salt + water. At this stage, we no longer have butyric acid, but butyrate, a buffered form of butyric acid.