Caffeic acid phenethyl ester inhibits neuro‑inflammation and oxidative stress following spinal cord injury by mitigating mitochondrial dysfunction via the SIRT1/PGC1α/DRP1 signaling pathway

Spinal cord injury (SCI) often results in severe and irreversible disability, due to sensory and motor dysfunction. The SCI pathological process includes primary injury, which is defined as mechanical injury immediately occurring at the site of injury, and secondary injury, including pathological phenomena such as bleeding, edema, neuro-inflammation, and oxidative stress. Microglia-mediated neuro-inflammation after SCI is the main cause of nervous tissue damage. Microglia are resident immune cells of the nervous system that play a positive role in physiological protection of normal nerve function. Caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) is a main component of propolis. Propolis has anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, and anti-cancer activities and these activities are thought to contribute to the beneficial effects of propolis.

• 1
  CAPE-treated SCI mice showed less neuronal tissue loss, more neuronal survival, and reduced demyelination.
• 2
  CAPE treatment reduced the expression of inflammatory and oxidative mediators, including iNOS, COX-2, TNF-α, IL-1β, 1L-6, NOX-2, and NOX-4, as well as the positive control MP both in vitro and in vivo.
• 3
  CAPE inhibits microglia-mediated neuro-inflammation and oxidative stress and supports mitochondrial function by regulating the SIRT1/PGC1α/DRP1 signaling pathway after SCI.