Influence of hexafluoro-2-propanol (HFIP) on lipopolysaccharides-induced inflammation in human microvascular endothelial cells of the lung

Hexafluoro-2-propanol (HFIP), a water-soluble primary metabolite of the volatile anesthetic sevoflurane, has recently been shown to have favorable properties, improving overall survival in a chronic model of murine peritonitis. The mechanisms of protection provided by HFIP are currently unknown. We therefore performed a gene expression analysis in an in vitro model of endotoxin-induced endothelial cell injury to gain insight into involved molecular mechanisms. Pathway analysis was subsequently performed using the GeneGo Metacore Framework. Human microvascular endothelial cells (HMVEC) were stimulated with 20mcg/mL lipopolysaccharides (LPS) to induce an inflammatory response. Hexafluoro-2-propanol (HFIP) was added to the cell culture medium containing LPS (phosphate-buffered saline, PBS, in controls) for a time period of 6 hours at a concentration of 8mmol/L. After 6 hous, total RNA from HMVEC was extracted and genome-wide RNA levels were assessed. In total, twelve samples with LPS- or PBS-stimulated HMVEC, from which six samples were treated with HFIP, were hybridized on microarrays . One sample of the LPS+HFIP group was lost due to technical reasons (hybridization procedure).