Boldine Exerts Neuroprotective Effects Against Rotenone Toxicity in SH-SY5Y In Vitro Model

Purpose: Rotenone induces Parkinson's disease-like neurotoxicity through mitochondrial impairment, oxidative stress, and apoptosis. We investigated the neuroprotective efficacy of boldine against rotenone-induced cytotoxicity in human SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells.Material and Methods: SH-SY5Y cells were pretreated with boldine (0.1–100 µM) for 2 h before exposure to 200 nM rotenone for 24 h. Cell viability, clonogenic capacity, active caspase-3 levels, and apoptotic nuclear morphology were evaluated using the MTS assay, clonogenic assay, ELISA, and Hoechst 33342 staining, respectively.Results: Rotenone (200 nM) significantly reduced viability to 32.3%, suppressed clonogenic potential (3.9%), and increased active caspase-3 levels (p