N-acetyl-l-cysteine ameliorates the PM2.5-induced oxidative stress by regulating SIRT-1 in rats

Silent information regulator 1 (SIRT1), a class III histone deacetylase, plays a major role in combating cellular oxidative stress injury. However, the role of SIRT1 in oxidative stress induced by particulate matter remains unclear. A total of 32 healthy male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into PM2.5, PM2.5 + NAC, filtered air (control), and filtered air + NAC (NAC control) groups. The expressions of MnSOD, SIRT1, and FOXO3a were examined at both transcriptional and protein levels. The expression levels of MnSOD, SIRT1, and FOXO3a reduced significantly (P < 0.05) in the PM2.5 group as compared to the control group. However, their expression levels were increased after NAC intervention. These results suggested that SIRT1 exerted a protective effect against PM2.5-induced respiratory oxidative damage by regulating the expression of FOXO3a. NAC can activate SIRT1 and exert an anti-oxidative role in PM2.5-induced oxidative injury.