TY - JOUR AB - Oxidative stress induced by cadmium (Cd) is a common phenomenon that has been observed in numerous studies. However, the underlying mechanism remains unknown. Recently, exposure of PC-12 cells to Cd has been shown to activate autophagy, which acts as a temporary survival pathway under stressful conditions by delaying the occurrence of apoptosis. The present study investigated the impact of oxidative stress on Cd‑induced autophagy in PC-12 cells. The results demonstrated that Cd‑induced autophagy (following treatment with Cd for 4 h), increased the levels of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), decreased the mitochondrial membrane potential and resulted in apoptosis. A treatment with chloroquine (CQ; an autophagic inhibitor) sensitized the PC‑12 cells to Cd, due to the increased production of ROS, which was associated with the incapacity to reduce mitochondrial and cell death. N-acetyl-L-cysteine, an antioxidant agent, decreased Cd-induced autophagy and reduced intracellular ROS levels, but enhanced CQ‑induced apoptotic cell death. These findings indicate that moderate levels of ROS are essential in the regulation of Cd-induced autophagy, which subsequently enhances cell survival. Thus, the results of the present study provide an insight for future investigation of Cd-induced neurotoxicity. AD - College of Veterinary Medicine, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, Jiangsu 225009, P.R. China AU - Wang,Qi-Wen AU - Wang,Yi AU - Wang,Tao AU - Zhang,Kang-Bao AU - Yuan,Yan AU - Bian,Jian‑Chun AU - Liu,Xue-Zhong AU - Gu,Jian-Hong AU - Zhu,Jia-Qiao AU - Liu,Zong-Ping DA - 2015/09/01 DO - 10.3892/mmr.2015.3907 EP - 4454 IS - 3 JO - Mol Med Rep KW - cadmium autophagy reactive oxygen species chloroquine PC-12 cells PY - 2015 SN - 1791-2997 1791-3004 SP - 4448 ST - Cadmium-induced autophagy is mediated by oxidative signaling in PC-12 cells and is associated with cytoprotection T2 - Molecular Medicine Reports TI - Cadmium-induced autophagy is mediated by oxidative signaling in PC-12 cells and is associated with cytoprotection UR - https://doi.org/10.3892/mmr.2015.3907 VL - 12 ER -