Naoxintong/PPARα Signaling Inhibits H9c2 Cell Apoptosis and Autophagy in Response to Oxidative Stress

Naoxintong (NXT) is an empirical formula based on the principle of traditional Chinese medicine, which has been approved by China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) and is widely used for treatment of patients with cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases in China. The aim of this study is to investigate the protective mechanism of NXT on H9c2 cells (cardiogenic cell line) in response to H2O2. MTT, Western blot, and flow cytometry (FCM) methods were used to identify the protective effect of NXT extract on H2O2-induced H9c2 cells. Here we found that NXT extract significantly increased H9c2 cell viability and reduced H2O2-induced cell apoptosis and autophagy. More importantly, NXT inhibited H2O2-induced H9c2 cell apoptosis and autophagy by increasing PPARα protein levels. In contrast, silenced PPARα terminated NXT protective effect on H2O2-induced H9c2 cells. These findings suggest that NXT/PPARα signaling suppressed H2O2-induced H9c2 cell apoptosis and autophagy.