α-Mangostin protects against high-glucose induced apoptosis of human umbilical vein endothelial cells.

Diabetic vascular complications result from high glucose -induced vascular endothelial cell dysfunction. There is an emerging need for novel drugs with vascular endothelial cell -protective effects for the treatment of diabetic vascular complications. This study aimed to investigate the protective effect of α-mangostin against high-glucose-induced apoptosis of cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). HUVECs were treated with glucose to induce apoptosis. The expression of the apoptosis-related proteins, Bcl-2, Bax and cleaved caspase-3, were detected by Western blotting. Ceramide concentration and acid sphingomyelinase activity were assayed by high-performance liquid chromatography. The cell apoptosis rate was detected by flow cytometry after staining with annexin V/propidium iodide.Compared to HUVECs cultured in 5 mM glucose, cells cultured in 30 mM glucose exhibited a higher apoptosis rate, upregulation of cleaved caspase-3 and Bax (pro-apoptotic proteins), downregulation of Bcl-2 (anti-apoptotic protein), increased ceramide concentration and enhanced acid sphingomyelinase activity (all p p