Inhibition of proliferation and apoptosis of human and rat T lymphocytes by curcumin, a curry pigment

Curcumin (diferuoylmethane), the yellow pigment in the rhizome of tumeric ( Curcuma longa), an ingredient of curry spice, is known to exhibit a variety of pharmacological effects including antitumor, antiinflammatory, and antiinfectious activities. Although its precise mode of action remains elusive...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Biochemical pharmacology 1997-10, Vol.54 (8), p.899-907
Main Authors: Sikora, Ewa, Bielak-Zmijewska, Anna, Piwocka, Katarzyna, Janusz, Skierski, Radziszewska, Ewa
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
AP-1
apoptosis
Apoptosis - drug effects
Biological and medical sciences
Carcinogenesis, carcinogens and anticarcinogens
Cell Division - drug effects
Concanavalin A - pharmacology
curcumin
Curcumin - pharmacology
Dexamethasone - pharmacology
DNA - metabolism
DNA-Binding Proteins - metabolism
Foods and miscellaneous
Glucocorticoids - pharmacology
Growth Inhibitors - pharmacology
Humans
Lymphocyte Activation - drug effects
Medical sciences
proliferation
Rats
Rats, Wistar
T lymphocytes
T-Lymphocytes - drug effects
Transcription Factor AP-1 - metabolism
Tumor Cells, Cultured
Tumors
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Summary:Curcumin (diferuoylmethane), the yellow pigment in the rhizome of tumeric ( Curcuma longa), an ingredient of curry spice, is known to exhibit a variety of pharmacological effects including antitumor, antiinflammatory, and antiinfectious activities. Although its precise mode of action remains elusive, curcumin has been shown to suppress the activity of the AP-1 transcription factor in cells stimulated to proliferate. In this study, we observed that curcumin (50 μM) inhibited proliferation of rat thymocytes stimulated with concanavalin A [Con A) as well as that of human Jurkat lymphoblastoid cells in the logarithmic growth phase. The pigment also inhibited apoptosis in dexamethasone-treated rat thymocytes and in UV-irradiated Jurkat cells as judged by DNA ladder formation, cellular morphological changes, and flow cytometry analysis. The inhibition of apoptosis by curcumin in rat thymocytes was accompanied by partial suppression of AP-1 activity. Complete suppression of AP-1 activity was observed in Con A-treated, proliferating thymocytes. The capacity of curcumin to inhibit both cell growth and death strongly implies that these two biological processes share a common pathway at some point and that curcumin affects a common step, presumably involving a modulation of the AP-1 transcription factor.
ISSN:0006-2952
1873-2968
DOI:10.1016/S0006-2952(97)00251-7