Whey peptides crossing a lab gut barrier and reaching muscle cells
What it found
In lab tests, small pieces of whey protein crossed a model gut wall and lowered stress signals in muscle and liver cells.
Some of these pieces also raised an inflammation signal in immune cells.
What they found
Animal and lab studies
Crossing the gut wall
After simulated digestion, small whey protein pieces moved across a lab model of the human gut wall. The main whey protein, beta-lactoglobulin, delivered the most building blocks to the other side, reaching 176 nM.
Lowering cell stress
Four of the whey pieces that crossed the gut model lowered stress signals in mouse muscle cells by 34.4% to 53%. Three of them did the same in human liver cells, cutting stress signals by 35% to 52.6%.
Raising inflammation signals
Five of the six tested whey pieces raised levels of an inflammation signal called IL-1β in human immune cells by 131.9% to 245.5%. Levels of another inflammation signal, TNF-α, stayed the same.
Cell damage at high doses
One whey piece, VEELKPT, damaged mouse muscle cells and human liver cells at the higher amounts tested. Another piece, AVEGPK, damaged liver cells at 5 mM.
What the authors conclude
- They conclude that eating whey proteins can deliver active protein pieces past the gut wall to target cells.
- Their lab results suggest these pieces may help lower stress in muscle and liver tissue.
How it was done
Scientists know little about which whey protein pieces survive digestion and actually cross the gut wall to reach body tissues. They wanted to track this journey and see what those pieces do once they arrive.
They broke down several types of cow whey protein using a lab model of stomach and gut digestion. They then placed the digested proteins on a layer of human gut cells grown in dishes for 2 hours. Finally, they tested the pieces that crossed through on mouse muscle cells, human liver cells and human immune cells.
What it can’t tell you
- All tests used cells in dishes rather than living people or animals. Lab cell results cannot show exactly what happens when you eat whey powder.
- The amounts used on the cells may be much higher than what reaches your muscles after a normal serving of whey.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- Teagasc Food Research Centre, Ireland; University College Dublin, Ireland; Università degli Studi di Milano, Italy
The paper
- Title
- Bovine whey peptides transit the intestinal barrier to reduce oxidative stress in muscle cells
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Animals and lab studies
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Cite
- Corrochano AR, Ferraretto A, Arranz E, et al (2019). Bovine whey peptides transit the intestinal barrier to reduce oxidative stress in muscle cells. Food chemistry. doi:10.1016/j.foodchem.2019.03.009Free full textPubMed 30902298DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error