[Abstract ] Objective As an important metal element, iron is involved in a variety of life activities.This study was to inves-tigate the effect of iron deposition on the apoptosis of PC12 cells and the expression of glyceraldehyde de-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH). Methods PC12 cells were incubated with FeCl3 at 50, 100, and 500 μmol/L for the establishment of an iron deposi-tion cell model.The proliferation of the PC12 cells was measured with the CCK-8 method, their apoptosis determined by TUNEL, the expressions of GAPDH mRNA and protein detected by quantitative real-time PCR and Western blot respectively, and the level of GAP-DH in the nuclei measured by immunofluorescence assay. Results Compared with the normal control group, the proliferation rate of the PC12 cells was decreased in the 50μmol/L FeCl3 group (100%vs [77.13 ±3.9]%, P>0.05) and significantly in the 100 and 500 μmol/L groups ([66.19 ±3.37]% and [13.84 ±0.43]%) (P<0.05).In comparison with the control, the expression of GAPDH mRNA was up-regulated in the 50 μmol group (1.00 ±0.00 vs 1.42 ±0.03, P>0.05) and remarkably in the 100 and 500μmol/L groups (1.93 ±0.07 and 2.33 ±0.15) (P<0.05), while that of GAPDH protein down-regulated in the 50μmol group (1.00 ± 0.00 vs 0.94 ±0.11, P>0.05) and markedly elevated in the 100 and 500 μmol/L groups ( 1.45 ±0.13 and 1.79 ±0.07 ) ( P<0.05) .After iron deposition, GAPDH transferred from the cytoplasm to the nuclei of the PC12 cells and nuclear accumulation was observed. Conclusion Iron deposition increases the apoptosis of PC12 cells, which may be related to the up-regulated expression of GAPDH in the nuclei.