The objective of this study is to determine whether Rab7 could delay intervertebral disc degeneration and study the mechanism. We chose old mice to established intervertebral disc degeneration model and study the effect of Rab7 on intervertebral disc by western blotting, quantitative real-time PCR, immunohistochemistry et al. Nucleus pulposus cells were cultured to study the exact mechanism. Expression of Rab7 was decreased in degenerative human nucleus pulposus tissues. With the aging of mice, the degree of intervertebral disc degeneration was aggravated and the expression of Rab7 was decreased. In addition, overexpression of Rab7 can reduce the degeneration of nucleus pulposus cells and reduce the levels of p38 and p-p38. Rab7 is a protective factor for intervertebral discs and could delays intervertebral disc degeneration through the inhibition of the p38MAPK pathway. (C) 2019 Published by Elsevier Inc.