HMOX1 and acute myeloid leukemia: A clear up-regulation of both Nrf2 and HO-1 protein levels are observed in the CdTe QDs-treated AML 12 cells, Nrf2 was significantly up-regulated 24 h after the initial exposure, while HO-1 was up-regulated after 24 h of CdTe QDs exposure (Figure 7).