Cytotoxic Power of Hydrogen Peroxide Effect on Endothelial Cells in vitro

The currently existing terms “apoptotic index” and “apoptotic potential” are insufficient for the adequate qualitative evaluation and analysis of the proapoptotic activity of chemical agents within the wide range of therapeutic and toxic doses. Herein we introduce a new concept of cytotoxic power as an alternative to these terms related to apoptosis and other types of cell death on the basis of experimental data of hydrogen peroxide cytotoxic activity towards the human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC). We also propose an algorithm for computing cytotoxic power. Correlations between the percentage of early apoptotic and late apoptotic/necrotic cells and the expression or concentration of endothelial markers such as CD143, CD309, von Willebrand factor, phosphatase PTEN, have been revealed.