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. 2016 May 25;11(5):e0154447. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0154447

Fig 5. Oxidative stress and cytotoxicity induced by EC aerosols in NHOKs.

Fig 5

(A) Intracellular GSH levels in NHOKs after exposure to EC aerosols. NHOKs were exposed to EC aerosols for 24 h and intracellular GSH levels were determined using a GSH-Glo assay. Fumed silica (100 μg/ml) was used as a positive control. *p<0.05 compared to untreated control cells. (B) Heat maps to show the dose-dependent increase in oxidative stress induced by EC in NHOKs. Conditions are the same as (A). (C) Cell viability of NHOKs after exposure to EC aerosols for 24 h was determined using ATP assay. The cell viability of the EC-treated cells was normalized to the value of non-treated control cells, for which the viability was regarded as 100%. Fumed silica (100 μg/ml) was used as a positive control. *p<0.05 compared to untreated control cells. (D&E) qPCR analysis of heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1) and nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2 (NRF-2) expression in NHOKs after exposure to EC aerosols. *p<0.05; ** p<0.01 compared to untreated control cells.