Saurabh Chatterjee, professor of occupational and environmental health in the UCI Program in Public Health, has been awarded a four-year, $2.5 million grant from the Department of Veterans Affairs to lead a three-site phase 2 clinical trial for treating Gulf War illness. The nutraceutical butyrate could help relieve symptoms that affect veterans suffering from symptoms including fatigue, headaches, joint pain and memory problems.

The research team will include faculty from the Program in Public Health and physician scientists from the Tibor Rubin VA Medical Center in Long Beach. In addition to Long Beach, trials will be conducted at the George E. Whalen Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Salt Lake City and the Bruce W. Carter Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Miami.

“Our goal through this rigorous process is to find a more effective treatment to help improve quality of life and well-being for our veterans,” said Chatterjee, who is also a professor in the UCI School of Medicine. “Butyrate has shown promise in gastrointestinal disturbances and as an anti-inflammatory in preclinical studies and should be effective in helping to relieve the symptoms of Gulf War illness.”