Objective To investigate the effect of genipin on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation and apoptosis in BV-2 microglial cells and the underlying mechanism.Methods LPS was used to stimulate BV-2 cells to mimic inflammatory and apoptotic responses in the central nervous system. BV-2 cells were divided into four groups:blank control group, genipin group, LPS group, and LPS+genipin group. The inflammatory and apoptotic responses of the cells were determined by ELISA, RT-PCR, Western blot, and flow cytometry.Results Compared with the blank control group, LPS significantly increased the levels of IL-6, IL-1β, and TNF-α in the supernatant medium and their mRNA levels in the cells. LPS also significantly upregulated the expression of the apoptosis protein Bax, but significantly inhibited the expression of the anti-apoptosis protein Bcl-2, resulting in a significantly increased cell apoptosis rate. Genipin pretreatment effectively reduced LPS-induced upregulation of the inflammatory factors (IL-6, IL-1β, and TNF-α) and LPS-induced apoptosis of BV-2 cells.Conclusions Genipin can protect microglia from LPS-induced inflammation and apoptosis.