Overexpression of the X-Linked Inhibitor of Apoptosis Protein (XIAP) in Neurons Improves Cell Survival and the Functional Outcome after Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury.
David ReigadaRodrigo M MazaTeresa Muñoz-GaldeanoMaría Asunción Barreda-MansoAltea SotoDan LindholmRosa Navarro-RuízManuel Nieto-DíazPublished in: International journal of molecular sciences (2023)
Mechanical trauma to the spinal cord causes extensive neuronal death, contributing to the loss of sensory-motor and autonomic functions below the injury location. Apoptosis affects neurons after spinal cord injury (SCI) and is associated with increased caspase activity. Cleavage of X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein (XIAP) after SCI may contribute to this rise in caspase activity. Accordingly, we have shown that the elevation of XIAP resulted in increased neuronal survival after SCI and improved functional recovery. Therefore, we hypothesise that neuronal overexpression of XIAP can be neuroprotective after SCI with improved functional recovery. In line with this, studies of a transgenic mice with overexpression of XIAP in neurons revealed that higher levels of XIAP after spinal cord trauma favours neuronal survival, tissue preservation, and motor recovery after the spinal cord trauma. Using human SH-SY5Y cells overexpressing XIAP, we further showed that XIAP reduced caspase activity and apoptotic cell death after pro-apoptotic stimuli. In conclusion, this study shows that the levels of XIAP expression are an important factor for the outcome of spinal cord trauma and identifies XIAP as an important therapeutic target for alleviating the deleterious effects of SCI.
Keyphrases
- spinal cord injury
- spinal cord
- cell death
- cell cycle arrest
- neuropathic pain
- induced apoptosis
- endoplasmic reticulum stress
- oxidative stress
- cell proliferation
- cerebral ischemia
- endothelial cells
- transcription factor
- trauma patients
- single cell
- gene expression
- pi k akt
- genome wide
- amino acid
- free survival
- brain injury