Protective effects of hyperoside against H2O2-induced apoptosis in human umbilical vein endothelial cells

Abstract

The vascular endothelium is important in the physiological homeostasis of blood vessels. Increasing evidence demonstrates that oxidative stress-induced endothelial damage is involved in the pathogenesis of several cardiovascular diseases, including atherosclerosis. Hyperoside, one of major active components from Apocynum venetum L. (Luo-Bu-Ma), which is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine commonly used for the prevention of cardiovascular diseases, exhibits diverse bioactivities, including anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. In the present study, the protective effects of hyperoside against hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced apoptosis of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were investigated. The results demonstrated that hyperoside significantly prevented the loss of cell viability, the increase of endothelial Ca2+ content and apoptosis in H2O2-induced HUVECs. Additionally, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and western blot analysis revealed that hyperoside significantly decreased the mRNA expression levels of B-cell lymphoma (Bcl)-2 associated X protein (Bax), cleaved caspase-3 and phosphorylated-p38, while increasing the mRNA expression of Bcl-2 in H2O2-induced HUVECs. The present findings suggested that hyperoside has protective effects against H2O2-induced apoptosis in HUVECs and serves a key role in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases.