Figure 2.

Effects of vitamin D on high glucose-induced HUVEC apoptosis determined by TUNEL method. HUVECs were cultured in petri dishes to 70%~80% confluence and then incubated with high glucose in the presence or absence of vitamin D (10⁻⁶ M) or Juglone (10⁻⁷ M) for 72 h. Cells were fixed in 10% paraformaldehyde for 30 min, washed with PBS, and then stained with TUNEL kits for positive apoptotic cells. (a) HUVECs with positive TUNEL staining; scale bar = 10 microns; black arrow indicates positive TUNEL staining. (b) Flow cytometry was used to measure cell apoptosis rate. HG: high glucose (33 mM); results are mean ± SEM (N = 5); ^∗∗ P < 0.01 versus control; ^## P < 0.01 versus HG (33 mM).