Cocoa And Cocoa Polyphenol Fractions Fails To Improve Colitis In Dextran Sulfate Sodium‐Treated Mice

Abstract

Cocoa and cocoa polyphenols have been shown to have anti‐inflammatory effects in the context of obesity and cardiometabolic disease in both animal models and human, however the anti‐inflammatory effects have not been well‐studied in models of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The aim of this study was to compare the anti‐inflammatory effects of cocoa and cocoa polyphenol fractions in the dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)‐induced mouse model of colitis. We hypothesized that cocoa and cocoa polyphenols would exert anti‐inflammatory effects in this model. Male mice were treated with defatted cocoa powder (8%) or the equivalent dose of solvent extractable polyphenols or non‐extractable materials. After 2 weeks of dietary supplementation, mice were given 2.5% DSS as the sole source of drinking water for 1 week prior to euthanasia. Treatment with cocoa or cocoa fractions had no significant effect on spleen weight or colon length, both gross markers of inflammation. DSS treatment increased mRNA expression of interleukin (IL)‐ 6, ‐10, ‐1β, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐ α; no significant difference in the expression of these markers was observed between the cocoa supplementation groups and the DSS controls. In summary, cocoa and cocoa polyphenols do not exert an anti‐inflammatory effect in the DSS‐induced mouse model colitis and may not be effective against IBD.