The Effect of Vitamin E on the In Vitro Differentiation of Adult Rat Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells to Osteoblast During Sodium Arsenite Exposure

Introduction & Sodium arsenite disturbs the differentiation of adult rat bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (rMSCs) to Osteoblast through oxidative stress. We aimed to investigate the preventive effect of vitamin E, a strong antioxidant, in sodium arsenite toxicity on rMSCs differentiation to osteoblast. rMSCs were cultured in Dulbecco’s Modified Eagles Medium containing 15% Fetal Bovine Serum and divided into: control, sodium arsenite (20 nM), vitamin E (50 µM) and sodium arsenite + vitamin E for 21 days in the osteogenic media containing 10% of fetal bovine serum. Cell viability, bone matrix mineralization, intercellular and extracellular calcium, alkaline phosphatase activity, DNA damage and cell morphological changes were evaluated. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA and Tukey's test and means were considered significantly different at P<0.05. Cell viability, bone matrix mineralization, calcium deposition, alkaline phosphatase activity and nuclei diameter decreased significantly in the sodium arsenite group. The mentioned parameters increased significantly in cells treated with sodium arsenite + vitamin E to the control level (P<0.05). Cytoplasmic extensions were also observed in the vitamin E group. Vitamin E reduces sodium arsenite toxicity, increasing osteogenic differentiation in rMSCs.