Abstract
BACKGROUND: Chronic elevation of glucose level activates vascular inflammation and increases endothelial adhesiveness to monocytes, an early sign of atherogenesis. This study aimed to elucidate the detailed mechanisms of high-glucose-induced endothelial inflammation, and to investigate the potential effects of Ginkgo biloba extract (GBE), an antioxidant herbal medicine, on such inflammation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Human aortic endothelial cells were cultured in high glucose or mannitol as osmotic control for 4 days. The expression of cytokines and adhesion molecules and the adhesiveness of endothelial cells to monocytes were examined. The effects of pretreatment of GBE or N-acetylcysteine, an antioxidant, were also investigated. RESULTS: Either high glucose or mannitol significantly increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, interleukin-6 secretion, intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) expression, as well as endothelial adhesiveness to monocytes. The high-glucose-induced endothelial adhesiveness was significantly reduced either by an anti-ICAM-1 antibody or by an interleukin-6 neutralizing antibody. Interleukin-6 (5 ng/ml) significantly increased endothelial ICAM-1 expression. Piceatannol, a signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) 1/3 inhibitor, but not fludarabine, a STAT1 inhibitor, suppressed high-glucose-induced ICAM-1 expression. Pretreatment with GBE or N-acetylcysteine inhibited high-glucose-induced ROS, interleukin-6 production, STAT1/3 activation, ICAM-1 expression, and endothelial adhesiveness to monocytes. CONCLUSIONS: Long-term presence of high glucose induced STAT3 mediated ICAM-1 dependent endothelial adhesiveness to monocytes via the osmotic-related redox-dependent interleukin-6 pathways. GBE reduced high-glucose-induced endothelial inflammation mainly by inhibiting interleukin-6 activation. Future study is indicated to validate the antioxidant/anti-inflammatory strategy targeting on interleukin-6 for endothelial protection in in vivo and clinical hyperglycemia.