FIGURE 5.

Effects of Δ⁹‐tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) on the production of short‐chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and roles of propionic acid in T cells. Mice were treated with staphylococcal enterotoxin‐B (SEB) followed by vehicle (SEB + Veh) or THC (SEB + THC) as described in Figure 1. Colon flush was collected and short‐chain fatty acids quantified by HP 5890 gas chromatograph configured with flame ionization detectors. The effects of THC on the concentrations of propionic acid, butyric acid and acetic acid in the colon flush mice injected with SEB (a). Splenocytes harvested from naïve C3H/HeJ mice were cultured and activated with SEB along with propionic acid (PA). The effects of propionic acid on the production of IFN‐γ, IL‐17, IL‐1β and IL‐10 from in vitro cultured T cells after SEB activation was determined by elisa (b). The effects of propionic acid on the proton efflux rate in cultured T cells after SEB activation was determined by a Seahorse XF24 analyser (c). Data were presented as mean ± SEM from five mice or five replicates in each group. P‐value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant, ^* P < 0.05,