2-Ethoxy-4,5-diphenyl-1,3-oxazine-6-one activates the Nrf2/HO-1 axis and protects against oxidative stress-induced neuronal death

Apoptosis or programmed cell death has been suggested as an important mode of neurodegeneration in Alzheimer's disease pathogenesis. The present study explored the neuroprotective effect of 2-ethoxy-4,5-dipheny1-1,3-oxazine-6-one (EDPOO) against H2O2-induced cell death in rat pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells. We found that H2O2 triggered a range of cellular cascades which leads to cell death, whereas pretreatment of the cells with this oxazine derivative attenuated the extent of apoptosis, as assessed by MTT assay, acridine orange/ethidium bromide staining and caspase-3 expression assay. We further showed that EDPOO exerts its neuroprotective effect by enhancing Hsp-70 level, stabilizing Nrf2 and upregulation of HO-1 and gamma-GCS. Moreover, this oxazine derivative regulated cellular redox status via antioxidant enzyme upregulation. The neuroprotective effect of this compound may provide a new potential application for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.