Original Article

Over-expression of nm23-H1 in HeLa cells provides cells with higher resistance to oxidative stress possibly due to raising intracellular p53 and GPX1

Run An, Yong-lie Chu, Chan Tian, Xiao-xia Dai, Jing-hong Chen, Qi Shi, Jun Han, Xiao-ping Dong

Abstract

Aim: To determine whether the antitumor factor nm23 is related with antioxidation.
Methods: Full-length human nm23-H1 was cloned into a mammalian-expressing vector and transiently introduced into HeLa cells.
Results: A remarkably low level of reactive oxygen species (ROS) was detected in the cells over-expressing nm23-H1. 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide and trypan blue assays found that the cells transfected with a nm23-H1-expressing plasmid had higher viability and stronger resistance to oxidative stress. Immunoprecipitation tests revealed that endogenous nm23-H1 formed a protein complex with p53. Furthermore, the intracellular levels of p53 and p53-regulatedgene GPX1 were obviously increased in the cells overexpressing nm23-H1. The downregulation of p53 in the cells overexpressing nm23-H1 resulted in a higher cellular ROS level and lower cell viability.
Conclusion: The findings suggest that nm23-H1 may act as a cellular protector against oxidative stress, possibly triggering the p53-related antioxidative pathway.
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