X-Message-Number: 27781
Date: Fri, 31 Mar 2006 21:18:50 -0800 (PST)
From: Doug Skrecky <>
Subject: some stategies for inhibiting TNF-alpha

[Grape, and psyllium may inhibit human age-associated TNF-alpha
increases.]

J Agric Food Chem. 2005 Nov 2;53(22):8481-4.
Antiinflammatory properties of the muscadine grape (Vitis
rotundifolia).
  The muscadine grape possesses one of the highest antioxidant
levels among fruits; yet, the effect of this fruit on mammalian
metabolic systems has not received significant attention. To
examine the antiinflammatory properties of the muscadine, grape
skins were dried, pulverized, and extracted (10% w/v) with 50%
ethanol. The extract was then tested in two different assays: the
release of superoxide in phorbol myristate acetate-activated
neutrophils and the release of cytokines [tumor necrosis
factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin-1beta (IL-beta), and
interleukin-6 (IL-6)] by lipopolysaccharide-activated peripheral
blood mononuclear cells. The release of superoxide and cytokines
was inhibited by increasing concentrations of the extract. A 1:100
dilution of the extract inhibited superoxide release by
approximately 60% while the release of TNF-alpha and IL-1beta was
reduced at a dilution of 1:200 by approximately 15 and 90%,
respectively (all P < 0.05). The inhibition pattern on the release
of IL-6 was similar to that seen with TNF-alpha. In a related in
vivo study, rats were fed a diet containing 5% (wt/wt) dried
muscadine grape skins for 14 days and then were injected with
carrageenan in the foot pad. After 3 h, paw edema was measured and
the rats on the grape skin diet had approximately 50% less paw
edema than controls (P < 0.05). These results demonstrate that the
muscadine grape skin powder possesses significant in vitro and in
vivo antiinflammatory properties.

J Nutr. 2005 Oct;135(10):2399-404.
A diet supplemented with husks of Plantago ovata reduces the
development of endothelial dysfunction, hypertension, and obesity
by affecting adiponectin and TNF-alpha in obese Zucker rats.
  The aim of the present study was to analyze whether consumption
of a fiber-supplemented diet containing 3.5% Plantago ovata husks
prevented many of the abnormalities clustered in the metabolic
syndrome, including obesity, dyslipidemia, hypertension and
endothelial dysfunction. For this purpose, obese Zucker rats, a
model of type 2 diabetes, and their lean littermates were studied.
Rats consumed a standard control diet or that diet supplemented
with 3.5% P. ovata husks for 25 wk. Body weights were measured
weekly. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) was measured monthly. At the
end of the treatment, plasma concentrations of triglycerides, total
cholesterol, FFAs, glucose, insulin, adiponectin, and tumor necrosis
factor alpha (TNF-alpha) were determined, and studies on vascular
function were performed using aortic rings. Rats fed the P. ovata
husk-supplemented diet had a significantly reduced body weight gain
compared with those fed the standard diet. Decreased
endothelium-dependent relaxation in response to acetylcholine (ACh)
by aortic rings from obese Zucker rats was improved in those fed
the fiber-supplemented diet. The greater SBP, higher plasma
concentrations of triglycerides, total cholesterol, FFA, glucose,
insulin, and TNF-alpha, and the hypoadinectinemia that occurred in
obese Zucker rats that consumed the control diet were significantly
improved in those fed the fiber-supplemented diet. We conclude that
intake of a P. ovata husk-supplemented diet prevents endothelial
dysfunction, hypertension, and obesity development, and ameliorates
dyslipidemia and abnormal plasma concentrations of adiponectin and
TNF-alpha in obese Zucker rats.

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