ANTIINFLAMMATORY ACTIVITY OF GLYCOGEN EXTRACTED FROM PERNA-CANALICULUS (NZ GREEN-LIPPED MUSSEL)

Previous laboratory based investigations of a commercially prepared fr eeze-dried extract of the NZ green-lipped mussel (Perna canaliculus) s howed that the material had the capacity to inhibit experimentally ind uced inflammation. The activity was thought to reside within an aqueou s fraction containing high molecular weight material, possibly a polys accharide. In the present study, a polysaccharide (glycogen) has been extracted from Perna canaliculus and its anti-inflammatory activity ex amined in an attempt to characterise further the high molecular weight components of this mollusc. Glycogen extracts administered i.v. demon strated a dose-dependent anti-inflammatory effect in rats with carrage enin-induced footpad oedema. Mobilisation of neutrophils to the site o f an inflammatory stimulus was also significantly reduced. This activi ty. was lost if the glycogen extract was treated with KOH or proteinas e K, suggesting that the anti-inflammatory properties resided within a protein moiety associated with the glycogen.