Aqueous L. Seed Extract May Protect Against Acute Palmitate-induced Impairment in Cultured Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells by Adjusting the Akt/eNOS Pathway, ROS: NO Ratio and ET-1 Concentration

Background: Endothelial dysfunction, which is a vascular response to oxidative stress and inflammation, involves a cascade of downstream events that lead to decreased synthesis of insulin-mediated vasodilator nitric oxide (NO) and increased production of vasoconstrictor protein endothelin-1 (ET-1). NO, and ET-1 production by endothelial cells is regulated by phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)-Akt-eNOS axis and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) axis of the insulin signaling pathway, respectively.

Methods: After treating the human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) with either palmitate complexed with bovine serum albumin (BSA) (abbreviated as PA) or the aqueous L. (chicory) seed extract (chicory seed extract, abbreviated as CSE) alone, and simultaneously together (PA + CSE), for 3, 12, and 24 h, we evaluated the capacity of CSE to reestablish the PA-induced imbalance between PI3K/Akt/eNOS and MAPK signaling pathways. The level of oxidative stress was determined by fluorimeter. Insulin-induced levels of NO and ET-1 were measured by Griess and ELISA methods, respectively. Western blotting was used to determine the extent of Akt and eNOS phosphorylation.

Results: Contrary to PA that caused an increase in the reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and attenuated NO production, CSE readjusted the NO/ROS ratio within 12 h. CSE improved the metabolic arm of the insulin signaling pathway by up-regulating the insulin-stimulated phospho-eNOS Ser1177/total eNOS and phospho-Akt Thr308/total Akt ratios and decreased ET-1 levels.

Conclusions: CSE ameliorated the PA-induced endothelial dysfunction not only by its anti-ROS property but also by selectively enhancing the protective arm and diminishing the injurious arm of insulin signaling pathways.