Objective    To investigate the effects of indole-3-carbinol (I3C) on the protein expressions of Bcl-1

NF-κB and Bcl-X/L in rat carotid artery after balloon lesions and study the apoptotic mechanisms of VSMC induced by I3C.     Methods    Thirty-five SD rat models with carotid lesions were randomly divided into 2 groups: control group (without treatment

n=5) and experimental group (treated with I3C

n=30). The experimental group was subdivided into 6 groups according to different I3C doses (12.5

25 and 50 mg/d) and different treatment time (4 and 7 d). Fourteen days later

the target segments were acquired and the 3 protein expressions were measured with SABC method.     Results    The expressions of Bcl-1

NF-κB and Bcl-X/L were decreased in different experimental groups. Compared with control group

significant difference in expressions of Bcl-1 and Bcl-X/L was found in the experimental groups (4 d

50 mg/d I3C; 7 d

25 and 50 mg/d I3C) (P<0.05 or P<0.01). Compared with the control group

all experimental groups except one (4 d

12.5 mg/d I3C) showed statistical significance in the NF-κB expressions. The difference in the protein expressions of Bcl-1

NF-κB and Bcl-X/L in all experimental groups was more significant than the control group with the increasing of the treatment time and I3C doses (P<0.01).      Conclusion    The apoptotic mechanism of VSMC induced by I3C after blood vessel injury is mainly through the pathway of PI3K-PKB/Akt cell signaling transduction to downregulate NF-κB and Bcl-X/L.