Similarly, BDNF-AS (antisense RNA brain-derived neurotrophic factor) was significantly upregulated in brain tissues from 20 ischemic stroke patients, and BDNF-AS siRNA inhibited hypoxia/reoxygenation (HR)-induced apoptosis and ameliorated H/R-induced reduction of mitochondrial membrane potential by activating the BDNF–TrkB–PI3K/Akt pathway following H/R-induced neurotoxicity (Zhong et al., 2017). Here, BDNF is linked to ischemic stroke.