Differential Expression of hsp70 Stress Proteins in Human Endothelial Cells Exposed to Heat Shock and Hydrogen Peroxide

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>The potential role of oxidative stress conditions in the induction of heat shock proteins was studied in human umbilical vein endothelial cells. We compared the effects of temperature (43 to 45° C), exposure to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and oxygen metabolites generated by the enzyme system hypoxanthine-xanthine oxidase (O−  2 plus H2O2), as well as exposure to 95% O2, on the expression of the major 70-kD heat shock proteins (hsp70). Northern blot analysis indicated that: (1) heat shock induced a rapid and marked increase in hsp70 mRNA levels that reached a maximum during recovery from a 30-min exposure to 45° C; (2) treatment with a 5-mM H2O2 bolus or 50 mU/ml xanthine oxidase also increased hsp70 mRNA levels but to a lesser extent than heat shock (about 10 and 25 times less, respectively); (3) no change was detected after a 5-day exposure to 95% O2. Nuclear run on transcription data and kinetics of mRNA decay in the presence of actinomycin D indicated that the observed increase in hsp70 mRNA levels in both heat-shocked and H2O2-treated cells was mainly due to a transcriptional induction. The kinetics of hsp70 synthesis correlated with the accumulation of hsp70 mRNA. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and immunologic analysis of these heat shock proteins revealed a series of at least five distinct hsp70 isoforms induced in heat-shocked cells, whereas only a specific subset of these proteins, mainly one acidic isoform, was induced in very low amounts in response to H2O2 treatment. These results clearly indicate that the endothelial cell responses to oxidative stress and heat shock differ in both qualitative and quantitative terms in respect to hsp70 induction. They also suggest that the intensity of this response to oxidative stress conditions may vary depending on the nature of the oxidative challenge.</jats:p>