Bactericidal antibiotics promote oxidative damage and programmed cell death in sinonasal epithelial cells

Abstract

In this study, we demonstrate that treatment of cultured SNECs with levofloxacin leads to an increase in caspase-3 activity. SFN pretreatment suppresses the increased apoptotic response possibly through its antioxidant stimulating properties. Our results suggest that levofloxacin treatment stimulates a potent proapoptotic possibly through an ROS-dependent mechanism. Future studies will explore if this antibiotic-induced response is harmful to recovery of function in those with sinusitis.