TNF and colitis: Subsequent analysis revealed that SCFA concentrations positively correlated with IL−10 levels but were negatively associated with pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL−6 and TNF−α) (Figure 7C), a finding further corroborated by the results presented in Figure 7D. These consistent observations suggest that specific gut microbial communities may modulate host inflammatory responses through SCFA-mediated mechanisms, thereby providing novel insights into the gut microbiota–metabolite–immune axis in colitis pathogenesis.