p-Coumaric Acid Protects Human Lens Epithelial Cells against Oxidative Stress-Induced Apoptosis by MAPK Signaling

To protect against oxidative stress-induced apoptosis in lens epithelial cells is a potential strategy in preventing cataract formation. The present study aimed at studying the protective effect and underlying mechanisms of p-coumaric acid (p-CA) on hydrogen peroxide- (H(2)O(2)-) induced apoptosis in human lens epithelial (HLE) cells (SRA 01–04). Cells were pretreated with p-CA at a concentration of 3, 10, and 30 μM before the treatment of H(2)O(2) (275 μM). Results showed that pretreatment with p-CA significantly protected against H(2)O(2)-induced cell death in a dose-dependent manner, as well as downregulating the expressions of both cleaved caspase-3 and cleaved caspase-9 in HLE cells. Moreover, p-CA also greatly suppressed H(2)O(2)-induced intracellular ROS production and mitochondrial membrane potential loss and elevated the activities of T-SOD, CAT, and GSH-Px of H(2)O(2)-treated cells. As well, in vitro study showed that p-CA also suppressed H(2)O(2)-induced phosphorylation of p-38, ERK, and JNK in HLE cells. These findings demonstrate that p-CA suppresses H(2)O(2)-induced HLE cell apoptosis through modulating MAPK signaling pathways and suggest that p-CA has a potential therapeutic role in the prevention of cataract.