Chicken collagen hydrolysate reduces proinflammatory cytokine production in C57BL/6.KOR-ApoEshl mice.

Effects of chicken collagen hydrolysate (CCH) on atherogenesis in apolipoprotein E-deficient C57BL/6.KOR-ApoE(shl) mice were investigated in this paper. The mice were fed on either a normal CE-2 diet (control group) or a diet containing 10% CCH (CCH group) for 12 wk. Compared with that of the control, the amount of total plasma cholesterol, total hepatic cholesterol and hepatic triglycerides in the CCH group was reduced by 14.4, 24.7 and 42.8%, respectively. Histological analysis results showed that the abundance of diffuse hepatic lipid droplets and fat vacuoles was decreased in the CCH group. Meanwhile, the concentration of proinflammatory cytokines in the CCH group plasma, including interleukin-6 (IL-6), soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (sICAM-1), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), was downregulated by 43.4, 17.9 and 24.1%, respectively. The present results suggested that CCH treatment might help prevent atherosclerosis through not only its lipid-lowering effects but also inhibiting expression of inflammatory cytokines.