AIM: To observe the expression of vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) in cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) by lipid peroxidation injury induced by exposure to diamide. METHODS: Expression of VCAM-1 mRNA and protein in HUVEC was determined by in situ hybridization and a cell enzyme-linked immunosorbent essay (cell ELISA), respectively. RESULTS: The HPIAS-1000 image analytic system in situ hybridization detected that the mean absorbance values in experiment groups(1, 5 and 10 ?mol/L diamide for 8 hours) were 0.147?0.013, 0.292?0.020 and 0.396?0.022, which were 1.91-fold, 3.79-fold and 5.14-fold as much as that of the control group (0.077?0.011), respectively. There was significant statistical difference between groups ( P