Effect of homocysteine on expression of interleukin-6 and NF-kappa B activity in cultured rat vascular smooth muscle cells

Objective To investigate the effect of homocysteine (HCY) on expression of interleukin 6 (IL 6) and nuclear factor κB (NF κB) activity in cultured rat vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) Methods Rat VSMCs were stimulated with HCY Cell ELISA was performed to measure the expression of IL 6 protein Semiquantitative RT PCR was used to detect the IL 6 mRNA expression Electrophoretic mobility shift assay was used to examine NF κB activity Results (1) HCY significantly increased IL 6 mRNA expression and production in rat VSMCs with a concentration dependent(0 01 0 25mmol/L) and a time dependent(0 48h) pattern (2) HCY could rapidly induce the activation of NF κB in VSMCs Baseline NF κB nuclear binding in VSMCs increase more than 1 76 fold at 30min, 1 91 fold at 1h and 1 84 fold at 2h following stimulation of HCY (3) The effect of HCY on expression of IL 6 mRNA was significantly inhibited in the presence of pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate Conclusion Homocysteine could induce IL 6 expression in VSMCs via activation of NF κB and elicit vascular infamatory response, which may thereby influence the pathogenesis of athersclerosis