Abstract
Context: Polyethylenimine (PEI) is a cationic polymer commonly used in gene transfer. Although numerous investigations have indicated that PEI can induce apoptosis/necrosis but the mechanism of its cytotoxicity is still poorly understood. Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of PEI/DNA complexes on the expression of apoptotic genes in human colon adenocarcinoma cells (HT29). Methods: HT29 cells were exposed to PEI/DNA complex (C/P = 0.8) for 24 h. Then, qRT PCR was used to assess the expression of 26 apoptotic-related genes. Result: Analysis of the transcript level of genes revealed that while the expression of anti-apoptotic genes such as Bclx, Bcl2, NFkB, and AIF was not significantly reduced but the expression of pro-apoptotic genes such as Fasl, Bax, TNFR1, DR4, Casp8, and cytochrome C was considerably increased in transfected HT29 cell lines. Conclusions: Our results showed that PEI could increase the level of pro-apoptotic genes and decrease antiapoptotic genes as a possible mechanism involved in PEI cytotoxicity.
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