Pigment epithelium-derived factor protects retinal ganglion cells from hypoxia-induced apoptosis by preventing mitochondrial dysfunction.

To investigate the potential of pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF) to protect the immortalized rat retinal ganglion cells-5 (RGC-5) exposed to CoCl After being differentiated with staurosporine (SS), RGC-5 cells were cultured in four conditions: control group cells cultured in Dulbecco's modified eagle medium (DMEM) supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum, 100 µmol/mL streptomycin and penicillin (named as normal conditions); hypoxia group cells cultured in DMEM containing 300 µmol/mL CoCl SS induced differentiation of RGC-5 cells resulting in elongation of their neurites and establishing contacts between outgrowths. Exposure to 300 µmol/mL CoCl Pretreatment of RGC-5 cells with 100 ng/mL PEDF significantly decreases the extent of apoptosis. PEDF inhibits the opening of mPTPs and suppresses decreasing of Δψm. Moreover, PEDF also reduces ROS production and inhibits cellular ATP level's reduction. Cyt C and AIF activation in PEDF-pretreated cultures are also reduced. These results demonstrate the potential for PEDF to protect RGCs against hypoxic damage