TNF and type 2 diabetes mellitus: Figure 4 shows that the levels of NF-κB, IL-6, and TNF-α in the liver of the T2D model group were significantly higher than those of the normal group (p < 0.01) by 2.1-fold, 1.3-fold, and 1.2-fold, respectively. These results show that severe inflammation occurred in the livers of the diabetic rats. After 4 weeks of feeding with sericin, the NF-κB, IL-6, and TNF-α levels in the three dose groups were all downregulated to normal levels in a dose-dependent manner (p < 0.05, p < 0.01).