Abstract: The aim of this study was to investigate the protective effect and mechanisms of epigallocatechin gallate(EGCG) against oxidative stress of HK-2 cells induced by high glucose.The results showed that EGCG intervention can improve the antioxidant capacity of HK-2 cells significantly,suppress the ROS levels in cells induced by high glucose,improve the cell vitality in a dose-dependent effect(P<0.05).Meanwhile,it was shown that EGCG can also cause nuclear accumulation of Nrf2 in association with downstream activation of Nrf2 mediated oxidative response genes such as HO-1,and the expression level of Nrf2 mRNA increased accordingly also(P<0.05).Hence,it was concluded that EGCG may protect against the oxidative damage of HK-2 cells induced by high glucose via the activation of Nrf2/ARE signal pathway.

Key words: EGCG, high glucose, Nrf2/ARE signal pathway, oxidative stress