Objective To investigate the protective effect and mechanism of erythropoietin (EPO) on injury of human retinal pigment epithelial (hRPE) cell induced by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Methods Take subcultured hFRPE cells as study target. They were treated with 800 mu;mol/L of H2O2 for 3 hours to establish the cell injury model. The cultured cells were divided into three groups：control group, simply injury group and therapeutic group which again divided into 10 IU/ml, 20 IU/ml, 40 IU/ml,60 IU/ml subgroups according to the concentration of recombinant human erythropoietin(rhEPO). NF-kappa;B was measured by immunohistochemistry. The content of Malondialdehyde(MDA) which was the product of cellular lipid peroxidation and the releasing rate of lactate dehydrogenase（LDH）were estimated by chromatometry. Results H2O2 could elevate the level of MDA and the releasing rate of LDH, compared simply injury group with control group, the differences were significant.(tLDH＝29.746,tMDA＝20.426,Plt;0.05); Compared all of therapeutics groups with simply injury group, the releasing rate of MAD and LDH were decreased obviously, the differences were significant.（LDH t10IU＝5.770，t20IU＝12.774，t40IU＝19.818，t60IU＝24.833，Plt;0.05；MDA t10IU＝5.345，t20IU＝10.278，t40IU＝18.571，t60IU＝20.247，Plt;0.05）; The correlative analysis results of each therapeutic subgroup were: ①the concentration of rhEPO had negative correlation with the relation rate of LDH and the content of MDA(r=-0.976，P=0.024； r=-0.968，P=0.032) ; ②the concentration of rhEPO had positive correlation with the nuclear translative rate of NF-kappa;B(r=0.998，P=0.002); ③the nuclear translative rate of NF-kappa;B had negative correlation with the content of MDA(r=－0.954，P=0.046). Conclusion EPO can protect hFRPE cells from the injury of H2O2, the mechanism may be related to the activation of NF-kappa;B.