Neural Regeneration Research (Jan 2015)

Upregulated Ras/Raf/ERK1/2 signaling pathway: a new hope in the repair of spinal cord injury

  • Tao Liu,
  • Fu-jiang Cao,
  • Yun-qiang Xu,
  • Shi-qing Feng

DOI
https://doi.org/10.4103/1673-5374.156984
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 10, no. 5
pp. 792 – 796

Abstract

Read online

An increasing number of studies report that the Ras/Raf/extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) signaling pathway has a death-promoting apoptotic function in neural cells. We hypothesized that the Ras/Raf/ERK1/2 signaling pathway may be abnormally regulated in rat injured spinal cord models. The weight drop method was used to establish rat spinal cord injury at T 9 . Western blot analysis and immunohistochemical staining revealed Ras expression was dramatically elevated, and the phosphorylations of A-Raf, B-Raf and C-Raf were all upregulated in the injured spinal cord. Both mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 1/2 and ERK1/2, which belong to the Ras/Raf signaling kinases, were upregulated. These results indicate that Ras/Raf/ERK1/2 signaling may be upregulated in injured spinal cord and are involved in recovery after spinal cord injury.

Keywords