Apigenin alleviates neomycin-induced oxidative damage via the Nrf2 signaling pathway in cochlear hair cells

Abstract

Oxidative stress plays an important role in the pathogenesis of aminoglycoside-induced hearing loss and represents a promising target for treatment. We tested the potential effect of apigenin, a natural flavonoid with anticancer, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant activities, on neomycin-induced ototoxicity in cochlear hair cells in vitro. Results showed that apigenin significantly ameliorated the loss of hair cells and the accumulation of reactive oxygen species upon neomycin injury. Further evidence suggested that the nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) signaling pathway was activated by apigenin treatment. Disruption of the Nrf2 axis abolished the effects of apigenin on the alleviation of oxidative stress and subsequent apoptosis of hair cells. This study provided evidence of the protective effect of apigenin on cochlear hair cells and its underlying mechanism.

Mechanisms and otoprotective strategies of programmed cell death on aminoglycoside-induced ototoxicity

“…Encouragingly, the safety and efficacy of ebselen for the prevention of noise-induced hearing loss are undergoing phase 2 clinical trials ( Kil et al, 2017 ). Moreover, other drugs have also been found to protect hair cells from aminoglycosides by intervening in the NRF2 pathway, such as apigenin ( Jia et al, 2022 ) and Heme oxygenase-1 ( Yang et al, 2022 ).…”