Protective role of autophagy in neonatal hypoxia–ischemia induced brain injury

Autophagy, an intracellular bulk degradation process of cellular constituents, plays a key role in cell homeostasis and can be induced by stresses, such as nutrient depletion, closed head injury or focal cerebral ischemia. This study focuses on the role of autophagy in neonatal hypoxia–ischemia (HI). Enhanced beclin 1 expression, a Bcl-2-interacting protein required for autophagy, has been used as a marker of autophagy. Beclin 1 was significantly increased at short times after HI, both in the hippocampus and in the cerebral cortex. Beclin 1-positive cells were found in the injured but not in the contralateral side and co-localized with MAP2 but not with GFAP or ED1, indicating that the protein is over-expressed in neurons. Beclin 1-positive cells were also TUNEL-positive. 3-Methyladenine and wortmannin, that inhibit autophagy, significantly reduced beclin 1 expression and switched the mechanism of the cell death mode from apoptosis to necrosis. Conversely, rapamycin, that increases autophagy, augmented beclin 1 expression, reduced necrotic cell death, and decreased brain injury. A prophylactic treatment with simvastatin or hypoxic preconditioning also increased beclin 1 expression. Taken together, these data indicate that autophagy is increased in neuronal cells after neonatal hypoxia–ischemia and suggest that over-activation of autophagic pathways represents a potential protective mechanism in the early stage of the brain injury.