AGING AND ENDOTHELIAL BARRIER FUNCTION IN CULTURE - EFFECTS OF CHRONIC EXPOSURE TO FATTY-ACID HYDROPEROXIDES AND VITAMIN-E

As the endothelium ages it may become more susceptible to damage by atherogenic plasma components such as toxic lipid oxidation products. Vitamin E (vit E) might prove to be anti-atherogenic by reducing oxidative injury. This study investigated the effects of age and chronic exposure to fatty acid hydroperoxides (OFA) and/or vit E on endothelial barrier function (EBF) and cell growth characteristics. Chronic exposure to 5μM OFA for 40 passages resulted in an age-related decrease in EBF, while supplementation of OFA-treated cultures with 25 μM vit E protected against the OFA-mediated decrease in EBF, independent of cell age. Vit E treatment alone had no significant effect on EBF relative to control cultures. No changes in growth characteristics, i.e., total DNA or protein per culture, were noted, regardless of treatment, although total DNA per culture decreased with increasing culture passage. These results suggest that chronic oxidative stress decreases EBF, predisposing the artery to infiltration by blood components and subsequent atherogenesis and that vit E delays cumulative changes in EBF related to chronic OFA exposure. © 1990.