[The relationship between oxidative injury induced by low glucose and mitochondrial membrane potential in HUVEC-12...

To investigate the relationship between the oxidative injury induced by low glucose and mitochondrial membrane potential in HUVEC-12 cells.

Human umbilical vein endothelial cells HUVEC-12 were cultured in low concentration glucose for 4 h. Cell viability of HUVEC-12 cell was assessed with MTT assay. Dihydroethidium (DHE) was used as a reactive oxygen species (ROS) capture, which was detected the mean fluorescence intensity of samples and Rhodamine 123 as a fluorescence detector was to measure the level of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) in cells.

Comparing to HUVEC-12 cells viability in 5.5 mmol/L glucose group (96.80 ± 3.20)%, cells exposed to 2.8 mmol/L glucose group (66.40 ± 1.60)% and 0 mmol/L glucose group (58.93 ± 1.67)% were decreased by 32% and 40% respectively (P < 0.01). ROS level of 5.5 mmol/L glucose group, 2.8 mmol/L glucose group and 0 mmol/L glucose group were 0.59 ± 0.02, 0.74 ± 0.04 and 0.88 ± 0.05, respectively, increased by 25% in cells exposed to 2.8 mmol/L glucose and by 48% in cells without glucose exposure comparing to 5.5 mmol/L glucose group (P < 0.01); MMP levels of 5.5 mmol/L glucose group, 2.8 mmol/L glucose group and 0 mmol/L glucose group were 148.83 ± 3.51, 271.07 ± 19.54 and 357.74 ± 51.32 respectively, increased to 1.8 times in cells exposed to 2.8 mmol/L glucose and to 2.4 times in cells without glucose exposure comparing to 5.5 mmol/L glucose group (P < 0.01).

Low glucose leads to injury in HUVEC-12 cells, which is probably induced by the oxidative stress via the increasing MMP.