Arginine and proline supplementation favor wound healing in diabetic rats

Rats on both high protein diets had better nitrogen balance than those on the standard diet. However, the wounds of the rats on the ARG+PRO diet showed more new blood vessel growth on day 5. New blood vessel growth is an essential part of wound healing as the blood vessels supply nutrition and oxygen to growing tissue.

Furthermore, the macrophages in the ARG+PRO group showed less cytokine stimulation and pro-inflammatory activity than the other groups. This indicates a better environment for promoting wound healing, as inflammation slows the healing process.

The researchers did not find a difference in skin regrowth between groups, but their findings may be limited because of the small number of rats in the study. Additionally, researchers did not measure markers of collagen deposition in the wound, and the study cannot confirm the beneficial effect of arginine on collagen deposition and wound breaking strength reported in previous research.

Importance of the Findings

This study suggests that arginine and proline supplementation could offer new hope for effective treatment in diabetic patients with chronic wounds. This is a promising new area of research where there are no existing effective treatments for these patients.

Source: American Physiological Society