Safrole oxide was found to significantly inhibit neuronal cell growth and induce apoptosis. Safrole oxide elevated the levels of cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2), interleukin-8 (IL-8) and reactive oxygen species (ROS), which was accompanied by nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) nuclear translocation during the transdifferentiation, suggesting safrole oxide may induce endothelial cell transdifferentiation into functional neuron-like cells.