Butylphthalide inhibits nerve cell apoptosis in cerebral infarction rats via the JNK/p38 MAPK signaling pathway

The aim of the present study was to investigate the influence of butylphthalide on nerve cell apoptosis in rats with cerebral infarction through the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK)/p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway. A total of 36 Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into sham-operation group (n=12), model group (n=12) and butylphthalide group (n=12). Additionally, qPCR was performed to measure the mRNA expression of Bax and Bcl-2, and a TUNEL assay was conducted to investigate the cell apoptosis. Compared with the sham-operation group, the model group and the butylphthalide group had notably increased Zea-Longa scores (P<0.05), while the butylphthalide group exhibited a markedly decreased Zea-Longa score, compared with the model group (P<0.05). The positive expression of Bax was markedly higher (P<0.05), while that of Bcl-2 was notably lower in the model group and the butylphthalide group (P<0.05), compared with those in the sham-operation group. Furthermore, the positive expression of Bax was notably decreased (P<0.05), while that of Bcl-2 was markedly increased in the butylphthalide group in comparison with those in model group (P<0.05). The model group and the butylphthalide group had markedly higher relative protein expression levels of p-JNK and p-p38 MAPK than the sham-operation group (P<0.05), and the butylphthalide group displayed notably lower relative protein expression levels of p-JNK and p-p38 MAPK than the model group (P<0.05). The relative mRNA expression level of Bax was markedly increased (P<0.05), while that of Bcl-2 was notably decreased in the model group and the butylphthalide group (P<0.05), compared with those in the sham-operation group. Compared with those in the model group, the relative mRNA expression level of Bax decreased markedly (P<0.05), and that of Bcl-2 increased notably in the butylphthalide group (P<0.05). The apoptotic rate was markedly higher in the model group and the butylphthalide group than that in the sham-operation group (P<0.05), but it was notably lower in the butylphthalide group than that in the model group (P<0.05). In conclusion, butylphthalide may inhibit nerve cell apoptosis in rats with cerebral infarction to exert a protective effect, which may be associated with the JNK/p38 MAPK signaling pathway.