Identification of the CCL2 PI3K/Akt axis involved in autophagy and apoptosis after spinal cord injury

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating neurological disease with no cure that usually results in irreversible loss of sensory and voluntary motor functions below the injury site. We conducted an in-depth bioinformatics analysis combining the gene expression omnibus spinal cord injury database and the autophagy database and found that the expression of the autophagy gene CCL2 was significantly upregulated and the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway was activated after SCI. The results of the bioinformatics analysis were verified by constructing animal and cellular models of SCI. We then used small interfering RNA to inhibit the expression of CCL2 and PI3K to inhibit and activate the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway; western blot, immunofluorescence, monodansylcadaverine, and cell flow techniques were used to detect the expression of key proteins involved in downstream autophagy and apoptosis. We found that when PI3K inhibitors were activated, apoptosis decreased, the levels of autophagy-positive proteins LC3-I/LC3-II and Bcl-1 increased, the levels of autophagy-negative protein P62 decreased, the levels of pro-apoptotic proteins Bax and caspase-3 decreased, the levels of the apoptosis-inhibiting protein Bcl-2 increased. In contrast, when a PI3K activator was used, autophagy was inhibited, and apoptosis was increased. This study revealed the effect of CCL2 on autophagy and apoptosis after SCI through the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway. By blocking the expression of the autophagy-related gene CCL2, the autophagic protective response can be activated, and apoptosis can be inhibited, which may be a promising strategy for the treatment of SCI.