Modulation of apoptosis and Inflammasome activation in chondrocytes: co-regulatory role of Chlorogenic acid

The B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) protein regulates programmed cell death throughout the disease conditions by upholding apoptotic pathways. However, the mechanism by which it’s expressed in chondrocytes still needs to be studied in chondrocyte-related disorders. Additionally, exploring the potential therapeutic role of Chlorogenic acid (CGA) in confluence with Bcl-2 modulation is of significant interest. In vivo and in vitro studies were performed according to our previous methodologies. The chondrocytes were cultured in specific growth media under standard conditions after expression verification of different microRNAs through high-throughput sequencing and verification of Bcl-2 involvement in tibial growth plates. The effect of Bcl-2 expression was investigated by transfecting chondrocytes with miR-460a, siRNA, and their negative controls alone or in combination with CGA. The RNA was extracted and subjected to a reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). Western blot analysis and immunofluorescence assays were performed to visualize the intracellular localization of Bcl-2 and associated proteins related to apoptotic and inflammasome pathways. Moreover, apoptosis through flow cytometry was also performed to understand the modulation of concerning pathways. The suppression of Bcl-2 induced higher apoptosis and mitochondrial dysfunction, leading to IL-1β maturation and affecting the inflammasome during chondrocyte proliferation. Conversely, overexpression attenuated the activation, as evidenced by reduced caspase activity and IL-1β maturation. In parallel, CGA successfully reduced siRNA-induced apoptosis by decreasing Cytochrome C (Cyto C) release from the mitochondria to the cytoplasm, which in turn decreased Caspase-3 and Caspase-7 cleavage with Bcl-2-associated X protein (Bax). Furthermore, siBcl-2 transfection and CGA therapy increased chondrocyte proliferation and survival. The CGA also showed a promising approach to maintaining chondrocyte viability by inhibiting siRNA-induced apoptosis. Targeting Bcl-2-mediated regulation might be a possible treatment for chondrocyte-related conditions. Moreover, these results add knowledge of the complicated processes underlying chondrocyte function and the pathophysiology of related diseases, highlighting the significance of target specific therapies.