Protective effect of Bilobalide on retinal ganglion cells in rats with optic nerve injury and its mechanism
10.13389/j.cnki.rao.2025.0164
- VernacularTitle:白果内酯对视神经损伤大鼠视网膜神经节细胞的保护作用及其机制
- Author:
Fei LIU
1
;
Dandan YANG
1
;
Xin XIONG
1
Author Information
1. 430000 湖北省武汉市,武汉艾格眼科医院眼科
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
optic nerve injury;
Bilobalide;
oxidative stress;
retinal ganglion cells;
apoptosis;
extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2
- From:
Recent Advances in Ophthalmology
2025;45(12):956-961
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
Objective To explore the protective effect of Bilobalide on retinal ganglion cells(RGCs)in rats with op-tic nerve injury and its mechanism.Methods Sixty rats were randomly selected from 75 Sprague-Dawley rats to establish an optic nerve crush injury model.The 60 successfully modeled rats were then randomly divided into a model group,and low-,medium-,and high-dose Bilobalide groups,with 15 rats in each group.Another 15 rats served as the sham-operated group,undergoing optic nerve exposure without crushing.Rats in the low-,medium-,and high-dose Bilobalide groups were intraperitoneally injected with 5,10 and 20 mg·kg-1 Bilobalide,respectively,once daily for 7 days.Rats in the sham-operated and model groups were intraperitoneally injected with an equal volume of normal saline once daily for 7 days.The superoxide dismutase(SOD)activity and malondialdehyde(MDA)content in the retinal tissue of rats in each group were measured.Immunofluorescence staining was used to assess RGCs proliferation.Hematoxylin-eosin(HE)stai-ning was used to observe histopathological changes in the retinal structure.TUNEL staining was used to detect RGCs apop-tosis.Immunofluorescence staining was used to observe the activation state of retinal microglia.Western blot was used to detect the expression of growth-associated protein 43(GAP43)and proteins related to the extracellular signal-regulated ki-nase 1/2(ERK1/2)pathway.Results Compared with the sham-operated group,the model group showed significantly decreased SOD activity and increased MDA content in the retinal tissue(all P＜0.05),a significant decrease in RGCs densi-ty(P＜0.05),significant increases in the apoptosis rate and microglial activation ratio(all P＜0.05),and significant downregulation of p-ERK1/2 and GAP43 protein expression(all P＜0.05).Histomorphology revealed edema and vacuola-tion in the ganglion cell layer,disordered arrangement of RGCs,and thinning of the inner nuclear layer and outer nuclear layer in the model group.After intervention with various doses of Bilobalide,all the above indices were significantly im-proved(all P＜0.05):SOD activity increased,MDA content decreased,RGCs density recovered,RGCs apoptosis rate and microglial activation decreased,the expressions of p-ERK1/2 and GAP43 were upregulated,the structural damage to each retinal layer was alleviated,showing a dose-dependent recovery.Conclusion Bilobalide can exert a protective effect on RGCs after optic nerve injury through multiple mechanisms,including alleviating oxidative stress,inhibiting apoptosis and microglial overactivation,promoting axonal regeneration,and activating the ERK1/2 signaling pathway.
