Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
1187110 | Food Chemistry | 2013 | 6 Pages |
•Whey protein hydrolysates (WPHs) contain antioxidant peptides.•Pretreatment with WPHs could protect PC12 cells against oxidative damage.•WPHs inhibited oxidative stress by regulating mitochondrial apoptotic pathway.
Whey protein hydrolysates (WPHs) were prepared with pepsin and trypsin. A PC12 cell model was built to observe the protective effect of WPHs against H2O2-induced oxidative stress. The results indicated that WPHs reduced apoptosis by 14% and increased antioxidant enzyme activities. Flow cytometry was used to assess the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), Ca2+ levels and the mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP). The results showed that WPHs suppressed ROS elevation and Ca2+ levels and stabilised MMP by 16%. The anti-apoptosis/pro-apoptosis proteins Bcl-2/Bax and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) were investigated by Western-blot analysis, which indicated that WPHs increased the expression of Bcl-2 while inhibiting the expression of Bax and the degradation of PARP. WPHs also blocked Caspase-3 activation by 62%. The results demonstrate that WPHs can significantly protect PC12 cells against oxidative stress via a mitochondria-mediated pathway. These findings indicate the potential benefits of WPHs as valuable food antioxidative additives.