Ulcerative colitis is a typical chronic inflammatory disease of the gastrointestinal tract, which has become a serious hazard to human health. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the antagonistic effect of corn
protein hydrolysate with
glutamine-rich
peptides on
ulcerative colitis. The sequential hydrolysis of corn
gluten meal by
Alcalase and Protamex was conducted to prepare the hydrolysate, and then the mouse
ulcerative colitis model induced by
dextran sulfate sodium was applied to evaluate its biological activities. The results indicated that the hydrolysate significantly improved
weight loss (p < 0.05), reduced the colonic shortening and the disease activity index, diminished the infiltration of inflammatory cells in the colonic tissue, and reduced the permeability of the colonic mucosa in mice. In addition, the hydrolysate decreased the contents of pro-inflammatory factors IL-1β,
IL-6, and TNF-α, increased the anti-inflammatory factor
IL-10 and oxidative stress markers GSH-Px and SOD in the animal tests. Moreover, the hydrolysate also regulated the abundance and diversity of the intestinal microbiota, improved the microbiota structure, and increased the content of beneficial bacteria including Lactobacillus and Pediococcus. These results indicated that the hydrolysate might be used as an alternative natural product for the prevention of
ulcerative colitis and could be further developed into a functional food.