AIM: To observe the effects of pyridoxamine(PM)on RAGE, ROS and apoptosis in RPE cells treated with advanced glycation end products(AGEs), and to investigate the protective effect of PM on RPE cells in diabetic retinopathy.

METHODS:Primary cultured human RPE cells, the third generation of cells were synchronized with serum-free Dulbecco-modified Eagle medium for 24h, and then grouped: 1)Control group: cultured with 100mg/L BSA for 48h; 2)AGEs-treated group: cultured with 200mg/L AGEs for 48h; 3)PM group: PM1 group: cultured with 16mg/L PM+200mg/L AGEs for 48h; PM2 group: cultured with 32mg/L PM+200mg/L AGEs for 48h. The expression of RAGE protein was detected by immunohistochemistry. The formation of ROS was observed by fluorescence microscopy. The apoptosis of cells was detected by TUNEL.

RESULTS:The expression of RAGE protein, ROS and apoptosis of RPE cells in PM group were significantly lower than those in AGEs-treated group, and decreased with the increase of PM concentration.

CONCLUSION:Pyridoxamine can inhibit the expression of RAGE and the production of ROS, reduce apoptosis, and have a protective effect on RPE cells.