Autophagy protects against PI3K/Akt/mTOR-mediated apoptosis of spinal cord neurons after mechanical injury.

Many studies have indicated that autophagy and apoptosis play an important role in the pathogenesis of spinal cord injury. In recent years, research on autophagy-related signal transduction pathways has demonstrated that the phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt)/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway is closely associated with the initiation of autophagy. However, the mechanism of the pathological relationship between this signaling pathway and apoptosis in spinal cord injury is unclear.