Gene dosage-dependent effects of bcl-2 expression on cellular survival and redox status

The human oncogene bcl-2 exerts protective functions in numerous models of apoptotic cell death and increased oxidative stress. We investigated the effects of inducible bcl-2 overexpression on cellular survival and redox status in dopaminergic rat pheochromocytoma PC 12 cells. Induction of high-level expression of bcl-2 in PC 12 cells resulted in generation of oxidative stress and cessation of growth by cell cycle arrest. Cell cycle arrest in bcl-2-overexpressing PC 12 cells was prevented by an inhibitor of extracellular signal-related kinase (ERK 1/2) activation. Protective effects of bcl-2 expression against L-DOPA neurotoxicity decreased with increasing amounts of bcl-2. Furthermore, high-level bcl-2 overexpression sensitized cells towards oxidative stress and glutathione depletion. Our data suggest that bcl-2 expression is beneficial only in a limited gene dosage range and that high-level expression of bcl-2 exerts potential deleterious effects.