Fig. 8.

The protective effect of H₂S on vascular endothelial cells in type II diabetes model. HG and palmitate induces an increase in ROS production in vascular endothelial cells. Increased ROS leads to extremes oxidative stress which impairs ATP production. This alteration results in excessive autophagy, which finally induces cell death. Exogenous H₂S attenuates ROS production through the Nrf2-ROS-AMPK pathway. Through attenuating ROS production, H₂S inhibits this pathway, which reduces excessive autophagy. This effect of H₂S can maintain the homeostasis of vascular endothelial cells and increase cell survival