Protective Role of Corticosterone against Hydrogen Peroxide-Induced Neuronal Cell Death in SH-SY5Y Cells

Stress breaks body balance, which can cause diverse physiological disorders and worsen preexisting diseases. However, recent studies have reported that controllable stress and overcoming from stress reinforce resilience to resist against more intense stress afterwards. In this study, we investigated the protective effect of corticosterone (CORT), a representative stress hormone against hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2))-induced neuronal cell death and its underlying molecular mechanism in SH-SY5Y cells, a human neuroblastoma cell line. The decreased cell viability by H(2)O(2) was effectively restored by the pretreatment with low concentration of CORT (0.03 μM for 72 h) in the cells. H(2)O(2)-increased expression of apoptotic markers such as PUMA and Bim was decreased by CORT pretreatment. Furthermore, pretreatment of CORT attenuated H(2)O(2)-mediated oxidative damages by upregulation of antioxidant enzymes via activation of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2). These findings suggest that low concentration of CORT with eustressed condition enhances intracellular self-defense against H(2)O(2)-mediated oxidative cell death, suggesting a role of low concentration of CORT as one of key molecules for resilience and neuronal cell survival.