School of Food and Health, Beijing Technology and Business University, Beijing 100048, PR China.
Food Funct. 2024 Jul 29;15(15):8116-8127. doi: 10.1039/d4fo01141d.
Research on plant and animal peptides has garnered significant attention, but there is a lack of studies on the functional properties of peptides, particularly in relation to their potential mitigating effect on radiation damage and the underlying mechanisms. This study aims to explore the protective effects of peptides against radiation-induced damage. Mice were divided into five groups: normal, radiation model, and low-, medium-, and high-dose peptide (TMP) groups (0.15 g per kg BW, 0.30 g per kg BW, and 0.60 g per kg BW). Various parameters such as blood cell counts, bone marrow DNA content, immune organ indices, serum levels of D-lactic acid, diamine oxidase (DAO), endotoxin (LPS), and inflammatory factors were assessed at 3 and 15 days post gamma irradiation. Additionally, the intestinal tissue morphology was examined through H&E staining, RT-qPCR experiments were conducted to analyze the expression of inflammatory factors in the intestine, and immunohistochemistry was utilized to evaluate the expression of tight junction proteins ZO-1 and Occludin in the intestine. The findings revealed that high-dose TMP significantly enhanced the hematopoietic system function in mice post radiation exposure, leading to increased spleen index, thymus index, blood cell counts, and bone marrow DNA production ( < 0.05). Moreover, TMP improved the intestinal barrier integrity and reduced the intestinal permeability. Mechanistic insights suggested that these peptides may safeguard intestinal barrier function by downregulating the gene expression of inflammatory factors TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6, while upregulating the expression of tight junction proteins ZO-1 and Occludin ( < 0.05). Overall, supplementation with TMP mitigates radiation-induced intestinal damage by enhancing the hematopoietic system and the intestinal barrier, offering valuable insights for further investigations into the mechanisms underlying the protective effects of these peptides against ionizing radiation.
植物和动物肽的研究受到了广泛关注，但对肽的功能特性研究较少，特别是关于其减轻辐射损伤的潜在作用及其潜在机制。本研究旨在探讨肽对辐射诱导损伤的保护作用。将小鼠分为五组：正常组、辐射模型组、低、中、高剂量（TMP）组（0.15 g/kg BW、0.30 g/kg BW 和 0.60 g/kg BW）。在 γ 射线照射后 3 天和 15 天，评估了血液细胞计数、骨髓 DNA 含量、免疫器官指数、血清 D-乳酸、二胺氧化酶（DAO）、内毒素（LPS）和炎症因子水平。此外，通过 H&E 染色观察肠道组织形态，通过 RT-qPCR 实验分析肠道中炎症因子的表达，通过免疫组化评估肠道中紧密连接蛋白 ZO-1 和 Occludin 的表达。结果表明，高剂量 TMP 显著增强了辐射暴露后小鼠的造血系统功能，导致脾指数、胸腺指数、血液细胞计数和骨髓 DNA 生成增加（<0.05）。此外，TMP 改善了肠道屏障完整性，降低了肠道通透性。机制研究表明，这些肽可能通过下调 TNF-α、IL-1β 和 IL-6 等炎症因子的基因表达，同时上调紧密连接蛋白 ZO-1 和 Occludin 的表达来保护肠道屏障功能（<0.05）。综上所述，TMP 的补充通过增强造血系统和肠道屏障功能，减轻了辐射引起的肠道损伤，为进一步研究这些肽对电离辐射的保护作用机制提供了有价值的见解。
