Hydrogen sulfide protects against high-glucose-induced apoptosis in endothelial cells

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is the third endogenous gaseous mediator identified after nitric oxide and carbon monoxide. It has been demonstrated that H2S has protective effects on myocardial ischemia/reperfusion-induced cell apoptosis. To date, little is known about the role of H2S in the pathophysiology of diabetic vascular complications. In this study, we investigated the effects of sodium hydrosulfide on high-glucose-induced apoptosis of primary human umbilical vein endothelium cells. Exposure to high glucose (25 mmole/L) for 48 hours resulted in the induction of apoptosis by 41.6% ± 1.01%, which was attenuated by pretreatment with sodium hydrosulfide (50 μmole/L) for 30 minutes. Further investigation of the apoptotic mechanisms in the cells demonstrated that high glucose upregulated the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2 and activated caspase-3 and also increased the levels of reactive oxygen species and malondialdehyde while reducing superoxide dismutase activity. All the above responses could be prevented by pretreatment with 50 μmole/L of sodium hydrosulfide. These results indicated that the protective effects of H2S on endothelial cells in the condition of high glucose might involve an antioxidative stress mechanism.