Tanshinone IIA protects hippocampal neuronal cells from radiation injury

REN Chen; DU Sha-sha

doi:10.3969/j.issn.1001-9448.2018.06.002

Abstract：Objective To investigate the effects of tanshinone Ⅱ A on the radiation injury of hippocampal neurons in vitro and its mechanism in radiation injury. Methods The hippocampal neuron cell line HT - 22 was cultured in vitro. The experiment included four groups, control group (Control), irradiation group (RT), irradiation + Tanshinone Ⅱ A treatment group (RT + Tan), and irradiation + Tanshinone Ⅱ A + glycolysis inhibitor 1 - deoxy - D - glucose (2 - DG) treatment group (RT + Tan + 2 - DG). The cell survival fraction was detected by MTT assay. Apoptosis was detected by flow cytometry. The content of lactic acid in the supernatant of culture medium was determined by enzymatic method. The expression of glycolysis - related enzyme LDHA was assessed by Western blot. Results The survival fraction of hippocampal neurons decreased after irradiation, while tanshinone Ⅱ A increased the survival fraction of hippocampal neurons and reduced the apoptosis rate after irradiation. The expression of glycolysis - related enzyme LDHA in hippocampal neuron HT - 22 cells treated with tanshinone Ⅱ A and irradiation treatment increased significantly compared with that of irradiated group. After adding the glycolysis inhibitor 2 - DG, the expression of LDHA in the hippocampal neuron HT - 22 cells, the content of lactic acid in the supernatant and the survival fraction were significantly reduced. Conclusion Tanshinone Ⅱ A can significantly attenuate the radiation injury of hippocampal neurons in vitro, and its protective mechanism may be related to glycolysis during radiotherapy.