Another mechanism relates to the anti-inflammatory properties of carnosine, whereby, in a model of permanent cerebral ischemia, supplementation with a beef decoction (in which carnosine accounts for 63% of amino acid content) dose-dependently down-regulated the expression of proinflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL)-6, the tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interferon-γ (IFN-γ), and up-regulated the expression of anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-4 [66]. The gene discussed is TNF; the disease is brain ischemia.