Lyprinol (stabilised lipid extract of New Zealand green-lipped mussel): a potential preventative treatment modality for inflammatory bowel disease.

BACKGROUND

Lyprinol (Pharmalink International), the stabilised lipid extract of the New Zealand green-lipped mussel, is currently used to relieve symptoms of arthritis. We investigated the effect of pretreatment with Lyprinol (LYP) on experimentally induced inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in mice.

METHODS

Male C57BL/6 mice (aged 6 weeks) were gavaged daily for 13 days with (150 microl) olive oil (OO; n = 7), fish oil (FO; n = 8), or LYP (n = 8). Mice consumed 2% dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) for 6 days, starting on day 7. Body weight and disease activity index (DAI) scores were recorded daily. Colonic damage was determined by histopathology. Colonic inflammation was quantified by myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity.

RESULTS

LYP treatment significantly (P < 0.05) reduced body weight loss, DAI scores, crypt area losses, and cecum and colon weights, compared with FO treatment. MPO activity was not significantly affected by any treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings provide preliminary evidence that Lyprinol may be potentially useful in ameliorating symptoms of IBD. The benefit, however, is unlikely to be due to the omega-3 fatty acid content. Dose-response evaluation of Lyprinol in experimental IBD is warranted.