Neural Regeneration Research ›› 2022, Vol. 17 ›› Issue (5): 1080-1087.doi: 10.4103/1673-5374.324857

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Baicalin attenuates blood-spinal cord barrier disruption and apoptosis through PI3K/Akt signaling pathway after spinal cord injury

Rui Zhao1, 2, 3, #, Xue Wu1, 2, 3, #, Xue-Yuan Bi4, Hao Yang1, 3, Qian Zhang1, 2, 3, *   

  1. 1College of Pharmacy, Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine, Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, China; 2Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Medicinal Resources and Natural Pharmaceutical Chemistry, National Engineering Laboratory for Resource Development of Endangered Crude Drugs in Northwest China, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, China; 3Translational Medicine Center, Hong Hui Hospital, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, China; 4Department of Pharmacy, Hong Hui Hospital, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, China
  • Online:2022-05-15 Published:2021-11-22
  • Contact: Qian Zhang, PhD, zq-melody@163.com.
  • Supported by:
    This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 81403278; the Natural Science Foundation of Shaanxi Province of China, No. 2017JM8058; and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities of China, No. GK202103079 (all to QZ).

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Abstract: Baicalin  is a natural active ingredient isolated from Scutellariae Radix that can cross the blood-brain barrier and exhibits neuroprotective effects on multiple central nervous system diseases. However, the mechanism behind the neuroprotective effects remains unclear. In this study, rat models of spinal cord injury were established using a modified Allen’s impact method and then treated with intraperitoneal injection of Baicalin. The results revealed that Baicalin greatly increased the Basso, Beattie, Bresnahan Locomotor Rating Scale score, reduced blood-spinal cord barrier permeability, decreased the expression of Bax, Caspase-3, and nuclear factor κB, increased the expression of Bcl-2, and reduced neuronal apoptosis and pathological spinal cord injury. SH-SY5Y cell models of excitotoxicity were established by application of 10 mM glutamate for 12 hours and then treated with 40 µM Baicalin for 48 hours to investigate the mechanism of action of Baicalin. The results showed that Baicalin reversed tight junction protein expression tendencies (occludin and ZO-1) and apoptosis-related protein expression (Bax, Bcl-2, Caspase-3, and nuclear factor-κB), and also led to up-regulation of PI3K and Akt phosphorylation. These effects on Bax, Bcl-2, and Caspase-3 were blocked by pretreatment with the PI3K inhibitor LY294002. These findings suggest that Baicalin can inhibit blood-spinal cord barrier permeability after spinal cord injury and reduce neuronal apoptosis, possibly by activating the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. This study was approved by Animal Ethics Committee of Xi’an Jiaotong University on March 6, 2014. 

Key words: apoptosis, baicalin, blood-spinal cord barrier, natural products, neuron, PI3K/Akt signaling pathway, spinal cord injury, tight junction 

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