Eupatilin prevents H2O2-induced oxidative stress and apoptosis in human retinal pigment epithelial cells

Abstract Eupatilin, a pharmacologically active flavone derived from the Artemisia plant species, is known to possess anti-oxidant activity. However, the effects of eupatilin on oxidative stress-induced retinal damage in retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells and the potential mechanisms involved have not been explored. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the effects of eupatilin on oxidative stress-induced retinal damage in RPE cells. Our results showed that eupatilin significantly attenuated H 2 O 2 -induced cell injury and ROS production in ARPE-19 cells. In addition, eupatilin pretreatment greatly upregulated Bcl-2 expression, downregulated Bax expression, as well as suppressed caspase-3 activity in ARPE-19 cells exposed to H 2 O 2 . Furthermore, eupatilin pretreatment markedly enhanced phosphorylation levels of PI3K and Akt in ARPE-19 cells exposed to H 2 O 2 . In conclusion, our data showed that eupatilin protected against H 2 O 2 -induced oxidative stress and apoptosis through the activation of PI3K/Akt signaling pathway in ARPE-19 cells. Thus, eupatilin may be useful for the prevention or treatment of proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR).