TNF-$alpha$ plays a pivotal role in inflammation processes which are mainly regulated by endothelial cells. While TNF-$alpha$ induces apoptosis of several cell types like tumor cells, endothelial cells are resistant to TNFa mediated cell death. The cytotoxic effects of TNF-$alpha$ on most cells are only evident if RNA or protein synthesis is inhibited, suggesting that de novo RNA or protein synthesis protect cells from TNF-$alpha$ cytotoxicity, presumably by NF-${kappa}B$ mediated induction of protective genes. However, the cytoprotective genes involved in NF-${kappa}B$ dependent endothelial cell survival have not been sufficiently identified. In the present study, the suppression subtractive hybridization (SSH) method was employed to identify rarely transcribed TNF-$alpha$ inducible genes in human arterial endothelial cells related to cell survival and cell cycle. The TNF-$alpha$-induced expression of the RNA binding protein $p54^{nrb}$ and the 14-3-3 protein HS1 as shown here for the first time may contribute to the TNF-$alpha$ mediated cell protection of endothelial cells. These genes have been shown to play pivotal roles in cell survival and cell cycle control in different experimental settings. The concerted expression of these genes together with other genes related to cell protection and cell cycle like DnaJ, $p21^{cip1}$ and the ubiquitin activating enzyme E1 demonstrates the identification of new genes in the context of TNF-$alpha$ induced gene expression patterns mediating the prosurvival effect of TNF-$alpha$ in endothelial cells.