Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40715882›Full record

ArticleMolecular biology reports2025

Curcumin promotes functional recovery after spinal cord injury by enhancing autophagic flux and attenuating apoptosis.

Ghufran Lutfi Ismaeel, Haider Kamil Zaidan, Ayoob Murtadha Alshaikh Faqri, Tariq J Al-Musawi, Mustafa Mudhafar, Hasan Ali Alsailawi

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Article in Molecular biology reports, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Ghufran Lutfi IsmaeelDepartment of Pharmacology, College of Pharmacy, University of Al-Ameed, Karbala, Iraq.
Haider Kamil ZaidanDepartment of Biology, College of Science, University of Babylon, Hilla, Iraq.
Ayoob Murtadha Alshaikh FaqriBalad Technical Institute, Middle Technical University, Baghdad, Iraq.
Tariq J Al-MusawiAl-Mustaqbal Energy Research Center, Al-Mustaqbal University, Hillah, Babylon, 51001, Iraq.
Mustafa MudhafarDepartment of Medical Physics, Faculty of Medical Applied Sciences, University of Kerbala, Karbala, 56001, Iraq.
Hasan Ali AlsailawiFaculty of Dentistry, University of Kerbala, Karbala, 56001, Iraq. hasanali.alsailawi@gmail.com.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

aimThis study aimed to investigate the neuroprotective effects of curcumin on apoptosis and autophagy regulation following spinal cord injury (SCI) in a rat model.

methodsAdult male rats were randomly assigned to three groups: sham, SCI, and SCI + curcumin (100 mg/kg/day, i.p. for 14 days). SCI was induced using a standardized contusion model at T9. Locomotor recovery was evaluated using the Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan (BBB) score over 28 days post-injury. Histopathological assessment was performed on spinal cord sections using hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and Nissl staining. Apoptosis was assessed using the TUNEL assay, counterstained with DAPI. Immunofluorescence staining for LC3 and p62 and Western blotting for LC3-I/II, Beclin-1, and p62 were used to evaluate autophagic responses.

resultsCurcumin significantly improved locomotor function in SCI rats, as indicated by higher BBB scores. Histological analysis revealed reduced cavitation and preserved neuronal architecture in the SCI + curcumin group. The percentage of TUNEL-positive cells was significantly reduced in the curcumin-treated group (30.47 ± 10.41%) compared to the SCI group (68.75 ± 12.25%, p < 0.01). Curcumin treatment enhanced autophagic activity by increasing LC3 puncta and reducing p62 aggregates. Western blot data confirmed upregulation of Beclin-1 and LC3-II, restoration of LC3-I, and suppression of p62 expression.

conclusionCurcumin exerts neuroprotective effects following SCI, potentially by attenuating apoptosis within spinal tissue and enhancing autophagic flux through modulation of key regulatory markers. These findings suggest that curcumin may be a promising therapeutic agent for SCI treatment.

Indexed as

ApoptosisAutophagyCurcuminSpinal Cord InjuriesAnimalsBeclin-1Disease Models, AnimalMaleNeuroprotective AgentsRatsRats, Sprague-DawleyRecovery of FunctionSpinal CordBeclin-1CurcuminNeuroprotective AgentsApoptosisAutophagyCurcuminNeuroprotectionSpinal cord injury

Identifiers

PMID40715882

What Socratic holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.