Propionic acid potassium salt is used as a preservative in the food industry and can be employed in research and experiments in the life sciences.

Propionic acid potassium salt appears to have beneficial effects on the immune, peripheral, and central nervous systems in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) (pwMS), demonstrating immunomodulatory, neuroprotective, and neuritogenic effects. These functions are critical because MS is characterized by immune-mediated damage to the myelin sheath in the central nervous system. Therefore, increased levels of propionic acid potassium salt supplementation or through microbiome and dietary manipulation may help counteract the proinflammatory state in MS by directly modulating the immune system and/or reducing the permeability of the gut barrier and the blood-brain barrier. [2]