Role of reactive oxygen species in epithelial­-mesenchymal transition and apoptosis of human lens epithelial cells
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Bo Ma. Department of Ophthalmology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710061, Shaanxi Province, China. mb780723@163.com

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Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No.82201163; No.81800812); Natural Science Foundation Youth Foundation of Shaanxi Province (No.2023-JC-QN-0861); Shaanxi Province Key Research and Development Program (No.2023-YBSF-483).

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    Abstract:

    AIM: To investigate the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) and apoptosis of human lens epithelial cells (HLECs). METHODS: Flow cytometry was used to assess ROS production after transforming growth factor β2 (TGF-β2) induction. Apoptosis of HLECs after H2O2 and TGF-β2 interference with or without ROS scavenger N-acetylcysteine (NAC) were assessed by flow cytometry. The corresponding protein expression levels of the EMT marker α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), the extracellular matrix (ECM), marker fibronectin (Fn), and apoptosis-associated proteins were detected by using Western blotting in the presence of an ROS scavenger (NAC). Wound-healing and Transwell assays were used to assess the migration capability of HLECs. RESULTS: TGF-β2 stimulates ROS production within 8h in HLECs. Additionally, TGF-β2 induced HLECs cell apoptosis, EMT/ECM synthesis protein markers expression, and pro-apoptotic proteins production; nonetheless, NAC treatment prevented these responses. Similarly, TGF-β2 promoted HLECs cell migration, whereas NAC inhibited cell migration. We further determined that although ROS initiated apoptosis, it only induced the accumulation of the EMT marker α-SMA protein, but not COL-1 or Fn. CONCLUSION: ROS contribute to TGF-β2-induced EMT/ECM synthesis and cell apoptosis of HLECs; however, ROS alone are not sufficient for EMT/ECM synthesis.

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Rui-Hua Jing, Cong-Hui Hu, Tian-Tian Qi, et al. Role of reactive oxygen species in epithelial­-mesenchymal transition and apoptosis of human lens epithelial cells. Int J Ophthalmol, 2023,16(12):1935-1941

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Publication History
  • Received:November 21,2022
  • Revised:August 15,2023
  • Adopted:
  • Online: November 22,2023
  • Published: