Abstract: Objective To observe the effect of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) on islet cell apoptosis and TXNIP expression. Methods INS-1 cells were cultured in vitro, treating with TNF-α (0, 1, 5, 10 and 20 mg/L). We tested the effect of TNF-α on cell viability by CCK-8. INS-1 cells were treated with TNF-α (5 mg/L, 24 h) for the proper concentration and time; mRNA expression of TXNIP and ChREBP were measured by real-time PCR; in addition, protein levels of TXNIP, ChREBP and FOXO1 were analyzed using western blot. Results TNF-α decreased the survival rate of INS-1 cells in a dose-dependent manner (P<0.05), and induced apoptosis; protein and mRNA expression of TXNIP and ChREBP were significantly higher than that in control group (P<0.05) ; while the expression of protein level of FOXO1 was down-regulated. Conclusions TNF-α induces apoptosis in INS-1 cells and aggravates the cell damage.

Key words: TNF-α, FOXO1, ChREBP, TXNIP, INS-1cells