A Novel Antioxidant‐Inhibited Dexamethasone‐Mediated and Caspase‐3‐Independent Muscle Cell Death

Dexamethasone (Dex)-mediated cell death is associated with repression of survival factors (AP-1, c-myc, NF-kappaB). Dex suppressed the activity of genes encoding antioxidant enzymes leading to impaired viability and apoptotic cell death. These findings suggest that reactive oxygen species inhibit protein synthesis and amplify m-calpain-dependent proteolysis. The events that led to death of L6 muscle cells were most likely triggered by Dex-mediated repression of antioxidative defenses on the genomic level.