A multifunctional alanine-rich anti-inflammatory peptide BCP61 showed potent inhibitory effects by inhibiting both NF-κB and MAPK expression

The purified BCP61 was reported to be a unique low-molecular-weight (MW) anti-microbial peptide because of its non-identical alanine-rich N-terminal sequence. In this study, we investigated the anti-inflammatory effects of BCP61 on induction of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), pro-inflammatory cytokines, nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB), and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated Raw 264.7 cells. The treatment with BCP61, with varying concentrations of 10, 50, and 100 μg/mL, inhibited levels of expression of LPS-induced NF-κB and MAPKs (extracellular signal-related kinases (ERKs), c-Jun NH₂-terminal kinase (JNK), and mitogen-activated protein (p38)) as well as production of pro-inflammatory mediators, such as nitric oxide (NO), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and interleukin-6 (IL-6). The results suggested that BCP61 prevents inhibitor of kappa B (IκBα) phosphorylation and degradation, thereby inhibiting the nuclear translocation of the p65 protein. We do report that the use of BCP61 in the treatment of inflammation as well as microbial infection could be a potent therapeutic candidate.