title: 6-Gingerol induces autophagy to protect HUVECs survival from apoptosis.
abstract: 6-Gingerol, the major pharmacologically-active component of ginger, has the potential to prevent heart disease. However, the mechanisms are not well understood. In this study, the protective effect of 6-gingerol against hydrogen peroxide-induced apoptosis in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) was investigated. Apoptosis was detected by Hoechst 33342 and Flow cytometry analysis. To further elucidate the crosstalk between apoptosis and autophagy, we tested the expression of autophagy related proteins, LC3B, Bcl-2, Beclin1, AKT, p-AKT, mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR), and p-mTOR. Furthermore, mitochondrial membrane potential and the intracellular generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) were also investigated. Our data revealed that 6-gingerol significantly reduced apoptosis by inducing autophagy. It has been demonstrated that 6-gingerol suppressed the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway, increased the expression of Beclin1 to promote autophagy, and increased Bcl-2 expression to inhibit apoptosis. In addition, the damage of mitochondrial was protected, and ROS level was decreased by 6-gingerol. These firmly indicate 6-gingerol has a strong protective ability against the apoptosis caused by oxidative stress in HUVECs, and the mechanism may relate to the induction of autophagy. Our data suggest 6-gingerol may be beneficial in the prevention of atherosclerosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, No. 222. Zhongshan Road, Dalian 116011 China.
authors.forename: Shaopeng
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Liaoning Anti-degenerative Diseases Natural Products Engineering Technology Research Center, Dalian Medical University, Dalian 116044, China.
authors.forename: Xiance
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Liaoning Anti-degenerative Diseases Natural Products Engineering Technology Research Center, Dalian Medical University, Dalian 116044, China.
authors.forename: Liping
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Nutrition and Safety, Dalian Medical University, Dalian 116044, China.
authors.forename: Xiaofang
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Nutrition and Safety, Dalian Medical University, Dalian 116044, China.
authors.forename: Min
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Liaoning Anti-degenerative Diseases Natural Products Engineering Technology Research Center, Dalian Medical University, Dalian 116044, China.
authors.forename: Xiaofeng
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.affiliation: Division of Environmental Health Sciences, College of Public Health, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA. Electronic address: sun.224@osu.edu.
authors.forename: Qinghua
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Nutrition and Safety, Dalian Medical University, Dalian 116044, China. Electronic address: yg290@163.com.
authors.forename: Guang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yang
mesh_terms: D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects; D001343:Autophagy / Q000187:drug effects*; D002396:Catechols / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D042783:Endothelial Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D005233:Fatty Alcohols / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D020939:Zingiber officinale / Q000737:chemistry; D061307:Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells; D006801:Humans; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide / Q000378:metabolism; D053078:Membrane Potential, Mitochondrial / Q000187:drug effects; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000187:drug effects; D020011:Protective Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt / Q000378:metabolism; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects; D058570:TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D002396:Catechols; D005233:Fatty Alcohols; D020011:Protective Agents; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species; C007845:gingerol; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide; C546842:MTOR protein, human; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; D058570:TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases
keywords: 6-Gingerol; Apoptosis; Autophagy; Oxidative stress