Aspirin protects endothelial cells from oxidative stress - Possible synergism with vitamin E

Hans Peter Podhaisky, Aida Abate, Tobias Polte, Stefanie Oberle, Henning Schröder

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

97 Scopus citations

Abstract

A 24-h incubation with hydrogen peroxide (0.65 mM) markedly reduced viability of cultured endothelial cells. Preincubation with aspirin (3-30 μM) protected endothelial cells from hydrogen peroxide-induced toxicity and increased viability in a concentration-dependent fashion by up to 64% of control. A similar protection was observed with D-α-tocopherol acetate (vitamin E, 3-30 μM). The cytoprotective effects of aspirin and vitamin E against hydrogen peroxide were overadditive suggesting different mechanisms of antioxidant action. In agreement with this, cytotoxicity induced by iron, the main catalyst of oxygen radical formation, was substantially reduced by aspirin but not vitamin E. These results show that aspirin protects endothelial cells from oxidative stress possibly via binding or chelation of free cytosolic iron. Moreover, a combination of aspirin and vitamin E might be useful for the prevention of endothelial injury in cardiovascular disease, e.g. during atherogenesis.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)349-351
Number of pages3
JournalFEBS Letters
Volume417
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 17 1997
Externally publishedYes

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work was supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (Schr 298/8-1). We would like to thank Martina Heidler for assistance in the preparation of the manuscript.

Keywords

  • Antioxidant
  • Aspirin
  • Cytoprotection
  • D-α-Tocopherol acetate
  • Endothelial cells
  • Vitamin E

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