Gastrodin protects endothelial cells against high glucose-induced injury through up-regulation of PPARß and alleviation of nitrative stress.

In diabetes mellitus (DM), high glucose can result in endothelial cell injury, and then lead to diabetic vascular complications. Gastrodin, as the mainly components of Chinese traditional herb Tianma (Gastrodia elata Bl.), has been widely used for cardiovascular diseases. However, the known of the effect of gastrodin on endothelial cell injury is still limited. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect and possible mechanism of gastrodin on high glucose-injured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC). High glucose (30 mmol/L) treatment caused HUVEC injury. After gastrodin (0.1, 1, 10 µmol/L) treatment, compared with the high glucose group, the cell proliferation ability increased in a dose-dependent manner. Meanwhile, gastrodin (10 µmol/L) up-regulated the mRNA and protein expressions of PPARß and eNOS, decreased the expressions of iNOS, also reduced the protein expression of 3-nitrotyrosine, and lowed the level of ONOO-, increased NO content. Both the PPARß antagonist GSK0660 (1 µmol/L) and the eNOS inhibitor L-NAME (10 µmol/L) were able to block the above effects of gastrodin. In conclusion, gastrodin protectes vascular endothelial cells from high glucose injury, which may be, at least partly, mediated by up-regulating the expression of PPARß and negatively regulating nitrative stress.