Deoxynivalenol (DON) is a mycotoxin produced by Fusarium sp., and is known to elicit pro-inflammatory responses in the cell. The cells exposed to DON undergo apoptosis as a mechanism to shut down the inflammation. In this study, we tested the cytoprotective effect of the green tea polyphenol epigallocatechin 3-gallate (EGCG) on DON-induced toxicity in HT-29 cells. EGCG prevented DON-induced cytotoxicity to HT-29 cells in a dose-response manner. Even the lowest concentration (5 μM) of EGCG showed protection against the highest concentration of DON tried (3.38 μM=1000 ng/ml). Our study also demonstrates that IC20 value of DON in HT 29 cells were 250 ng/ml and pre-treatment with 20 μM EGCG yielded 99% cell viability. EGCG also protected against oxidative stress, up regulation of nuclear factor-kB (NF-κB), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and caspase-3 activated apoptosis. These results suggest that EGCG acts as cytoprotective agent against DON-induced toxicity.
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