• Journal of Photoscience
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• 제11권3호
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• pp.95-99
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• 2004

Optical absorption and emission studies have been carried out to understand the effect of deuterium on the solvent dependent photophysical properties of curcumin in deuterated solvents such as $CDCl_3,\;(CD_3)_2SO,\;(CD_3)_2CO,\;CD_3OD\;and\;CD_3CN$. Optical absorption spectral studies showed that there is no significant shift in absorption maxima compared to the non-deuterated solvent. The fluorescence maxima shows significant shift with polarity of solvent but not much affected by the deuteration. The fluorescence quantum yield of curcumin increased marginally in almost all the deuterated solvents, indicating reduction in the non-radiative pathways. The fluorescence decay was biexponential in all the solvents and the average fluorescence lifetime was not much affected with deuteration, but showed decrease with increasing solvent polarity. Based on these studies, it is concluded that intermolecular hydrogen transfer is only partially responsible for the excited state deactivation of curcumin.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• 제25권4호
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• pp.221-227
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• 2012

Background: It has been reported that curcumin, the main active compound of Curcuma longa, also known as turmeric, exhibits antinociceptive properties. The aim of this study was to examine the participation of ATP-sensitive potassium channels ($K_{ATP}$ channels) and, in particular, that of the L-arginine-nitric oxide-cyclic GMP-$K_{ATP}$ channel pathway, in the antinociceptive effect of curcumin. Methods: Pain was induced by the intraplantar injection of 1% formalin in the right hind paw of Wistar rats. Formalin-induced flinching behavior was interpreted as an expression of nociception. The antinociceptive effect of oral curcumin was explored in the presence and absence of local pretreatment with L-NAME, an inhibitor of nitric oxide synthase, ODQ, an inhibitor of soluble guanylyl cyclase, and glibenclamide, a blocker of $K_{ATP}$ channels. Results: Oral curcumin produced a dose-dependent antinociceptive effect in the 1% formalin test. Curcumin-induced antinociception was not altered by local L-NAME or ODQ, but was significantly impaired by glibenclamide. Conclusions: Our results confirm that curcumin is an effective antinociceptive agent. Curcumin-induced antinociception appears to involve the participation of $K_{ATP}$ channels at the peripheral level, as local injection of glibenclamide prevented its effect. Activation of $K_{ATP}$ channels, however, does not occur by activation of the L-arginine-nitric oxide-cGMP-$K_{ATP}$ channel pathway.

• BMB Reports
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• 제35권3호
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• pp.337-342
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• 2002

Many components that are derived from medicinal or dietary plants possess potential chemopreventive properties. Curcumin, a yellow coloring agent from turmeric (Curcuma longa Linn, Zingiberaceae), possesses strong antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic activities. In this study, we have found that curcumin inhibits the 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA)-induced nuclear factor ${\kappa}B$ (NF-${\kappa}B$) activation by preventing the degradation of the inhibitory protein $I{\kappa}B{\alpha}$ and the subsequent translocation of the p65 subunit in cultured human promyelocytic leukemia (HL-60) cells. Alternatively, curcumin repressed the TPA-induced activation of NF-${\kappa}B$ through direct interruption of the binding of NF-${\kappa}B$ to its consensus DNA sequences. Likewise, the TPA-induced DNA binding of the activator protein-1 (AP-1) was inhibited by curcumin pretreatment.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제16권9호
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• pp.3917-3922
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• 2015

Curcumin, a lipid-soluble compound extracted from the plant Curcuma Longa, has been found to exert immunomodulatory effects via macrophages. However, most studies focus on the low bioavailability issue of curcumin by nano and microparticles, and thus the role of macrophages in the anticancer mechanism of curcumin has received little attention so far. We have previously shown the potential biocompatibility, biodegradability and anti-cancer effects of dendrosomal curcumin (DNC). In this study, twenty-seven BALB/c mice were equally divided into control as well as 40 and 80 mg/kg groups of DNC to investigate the involvement of macrophages in the antitumor effects of curcumin in a typical animal model of metastatic breast cancer. At the end of intervention, the tumor volume and weight were significantly reduced in DNC groups compared to control (P<0.05). Histopathological data showed the presence of macrophages in tumor and spleen tissues. Real-time PCR results showed that DNC increased the expression of STAT4 and IL-12 genes in tumor and spleen tissues in comparison with control (P<0.05), referring to the high levels of M1 macrophages. Furthermore treatment with DNC decreased STAT3, IL-10 and arginase I gene expression (P<0.05), indicating low levels of M2 macrophage. The results confirm the role of macrophages in the protective effects of dendrosomal curcumin against metastatic breast cancer in mice.

• Journal of Photoscience
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• 제11권3호
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• pp.129-132
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• 2004

Photochemically stable dibenzoylmethane and curcumin were cleaved dramatically when they were irradiated in the presence of N,N-dimethylaniline in methanol with 300 nm UV light. Several products such as benzil, secondary product derived from 1,4-diphenyl-1,4-butanedione, and unidentified compound were observed from the photoreactions of dibenzoylmethane with N,N-dimethylaniline. It was also found that one of the primary fragments produced by irradiation of curcumin in methanol were coupled with N,N-dimethylaniline to give a new enone compound, i.e., 1-(4-dimethylaminophenyl)-4-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-but-3-en-2-one, as the major product.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제7권6호
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• pp.307-310
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• 2003

Kainic acid (KA) is a structural analogue of glutamate that interacts with specific presynaptic and postsynaptic receptors to potentiate the release and excitatory actions of glutamate. Systemic or intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) administration of KA to experimental animals elicits multifocal seizures with a predominantly limbic localization, and results in neuronal death of cornu ammonia 1 (CA1), reactive gliosis and biochemical changes in the hippocampus and other limbic structures. Several lines of evidence suggest that reactive oxygen species (ROS) play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of excitotoxic death by KA. Curcumin has been known to possess anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory activities. In this study, the effects of curcumin on KA induced hippocampal cell death, reactive gliosis and biochemical changes in reactive glia were investigated by immunohistochemical methods. Our data demonstrated that curcumin attenuated KA-induced astroglial and microglial activation although it did not protect KA-induced hippocampal cell death.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제15권1호
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• pp.1-7
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• 2011

Many anticancer agents as well as ionizing radiation have been shown to induce autophagy which is originally described as a protein recycling process and recently reported to play a crucial role in various disorders. In HCT116 human colon cancer cells, we found that curcumin, a polyphenolic phytochemical extracted from the plant Curcuma longa, markedly induced the conversion of microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 (LC3)-I to LC3-II and degradation of sequestome-1 (SQSTM1) which is a marker of autophagosome degradation. Moreover, we found that curcumin caused GFP-LC3 formation puncta, a marker of autophagosome, and decrease of GFP-LC3 and SQSTM1 protein level in GFP-LC3 expressing HCT116 cells. It was further confirmed that treatment of cells with hydrogen peroxide induced increase of LC3 conversion and decrease of GFP-LC3 and SQSTM1 levels, but these changes by curcumin were almost completely blocked in the presence of antioxidant, N-acetylcystein (NAC), indicating that curcumin leads to reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, which results in autophagosome development and autolysosomal degradation. In parallel with NAC, SQSTM1 degradation was also diminished by bafilomycin A, a potent inhibitor of autophagosome-lysosome fusion, and cell viability assay was further confirmed that cucurmin-induced cell death was partially blocked by bafilomycin A as well as NAC. We also observed that NAC abolished curcumin-induced activation of extracelluar signal-regulated kinases (ERK) 112 and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK), but not Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK). However, the activation of ERK1/2 and p38 MAPK seemed to have no effect on the curcumin-induced autophagy, since both the conversion of LC3 protein and SQSTM1 degradation by curcumin was not changed in the presence of NAC. Taken together, our data suggest that curcumin induced ROS production, which resulted in autophagic activation and concomitant cell death in HCT116 human colon cancer cell. However, ROS-dependent activation of ERK1/2 and p38 MAPK, but not JNK, might not be involved in the curcumin-induced autophagy.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제16권18호
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• pp.8271-8279
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• 2016

Background: Hepato-carcinogenesis is multifaceted in its molecular aspects. Among the interplaying agents are altered gap junctions, the proteasome/autophagy system, and mitochondria. The present experimental study was designed to outline the roles of these players and to investigate the tumor suppressive effects of curcumin with or without mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Materials and Methods: Adult female albino rats were divided into normal controls and animals with HCC induced by diethyl-nitrosamine (DENA) and $CCl_4$. Additional groups treated after HCC induction were: Cur/HCC which received curcumin; MSCs/HCC which received MSCs; and Cur+MSCs/HCC which received both curcumin and MSCs. For all groups there were histopathological examination and assessment of gene expression of connexin43 (Cx43), ubiquitin ligase-E3 (UCP-3), the autophagy marker LC3 and coenzyme-Q10 (Mito.Q10) mRNA by real time, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, along with measurement of LC3II/LC3I ratio for estimation of autophagosome formation in the rat liver tissue. In addition, the serum levels of ALT, AST and alpha fetoprotein (AFP), together with the proinflammatory cytokines $TNF{\alpha}$ and IL-6, were determined in all groups. Results: Histopathological examination of liver tissue from animals which received DENA-$CCl_4$ only revealed the presence of anaplastic carcinoma cells and macro-regenerative nodules. Administration of curcumin, MSCs; each alone or combined into rats after induction of HCC improved the histopathological picture. This was accompanied by significant reduction in ${\alpha}$-fetoprotein together with proinflammatory cytokines and significant decrease of various liver enzymes, in addition to upregulation of Cx43, UCP-3, LC3 and Mito.Q10 mRNA. Conclusions: Improvement of Cx43 expression, nonapoptotic cell death and mitochondrial function can repress tumor growth in HCC. Administration of curcumin and/or MSCs have tumor suppressive effects as they can target these mechanisms. However, further research is still needed to verify their effectiveness.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• 제61권2호
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• pp.187-190
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• 2018

Two curcumin derivatives, demethoxycurcumin (DMC) and bisdemethoxycurcumin (BDMC), isolated from Curcuma longa were analyzed for their inhibitory activities against two isoforms of monoamine oxidase (MAO), which is involved in the catalysis of neurotransmitting monoamines. In the study, DMC and BDMC potently inhibited human MAO-B, with $IC_{50}$ values of 2.45 and $2.59{\mu}M$, respectively, and both compounds showed effective inhibitory activities against human MAO-A, with $IC_{50}$ values of 3.24 and $3.09{\mu}M$, respectively. The inhibitory activities of the two compounds were higher than those of curcumin. The removal of the methoxy or dimethoxy groups in curcumin might increase the inhibitory activities against human MAO-A and MAO-B. The inhibited activities were recovered to almost the values of the reversible references in the dialysis experiments with DMC and BDMC. DMC and BDMC showed competitive inhibition for MAO-A and MAO-B, respectively, with $K_i$ values of 0.91 and $0.80{\mu}M$, respectively. These results suggest that the two curcumin derivatives may be useful or lead compounds in the treatment of related disorders as potent reversible MAO inhibitors.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제11권1호
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• pp.9-13
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• 2007

Antioxidant properties have been proposed as a mechanism for the putative anti-inflammatory effects of phenolic compounds. To reveal the relationship between antioxidant activity and anti-inflammatory effects of various antioxidants, we measured 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picryhydrazyl(DPPH)-reducing activity and examined the inhibitory effects on LPS-induced inflammation-related gene expression in the BV2 microglial cell line. Lipopolysaccharide(LPS)(0.2 ${\mu}g/ml$) was used with or without antioxidants to treat cells, and the regulation of iNOS and cytokine gene expression was monitored using an RNase protection assay(RPA). Although, all tested antioxidants had similar DPPH-reducing activity and inhibited nitrite production, but the curcuminoid antioxidants(ferulic acid, caffeic acid, and curcumin) inhibited LPS-induced gene expression(iNOS, $TNF-\alpha,\;IL-1{\beta}$, IL-6, and IL-1 Ra) in a concentration-dependent manner. Other tested antioxidants did not exhibit the same effects; N-acetylcysteine(NAC) only began to suppress $IL-1{\beta}$ gene expression just below the concentration at which cytotoxicity occurred. Moreover, the antioxidant potency of curcuminoids appeared to have no correlation with anti-inflammatory potency. Only curcumin could inhibit LPS-induced microglial activation at a micromolar level. These data suggest that curcumin may be a safe antioxidant possessing anti-inflammatory activity.