Biliverdin Reductase A Protects Lens Epithelial Cells against Oxidative Damage and Cellular Senescence in Age-Related Cataract

Figure 8

BVRA protects LECs against oxidative stress-induced cellular senescence. (a) After overexpressing or knocking down BVRA, LECs were incubated with H₂O₂ for 96 h. The morphological changes of young LECs were observed at 48 h and 96 h by a microscope. The cell proliferation was determined by CCK-8 assay at 48 h and 96 h. (b) BVRA overexpressed or silenced LECs were incubated with 100 μM H₂O₂ for 7 days. The percentage of senescent cells was analyzed by SA-β-gal staining at day 7. (c) The effects of BVRA on the relative expression of cell cycle regulators (p21, p16^INK4α, cyclin D1, and CDK4) at day 4 were determined by western blot. (d) The effects of BVRA on cell cycle progression in different groups at day 4. Data are shown as . One-way ANOVA, and , compared with the control group. ^# compared with the BVRA siRNA-transfected cells exposed to H₂O₂. ^ψ compared with the pcDNA3.1-BVRA-transfected cells exposed to H₂O₂. Bar 200 μm.

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