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Curcumin induces DNA damage and caffeine-insensitive cell cycle arrest in colorectal carcinoma HCT116 cells

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Abstract

Curcumin (CUR), a polyphenol derived from the plant Curcuma longa, displays potential anti-cancer activity. One of the mechanisms stems from its ability to elicit cell cycle arrest followed by suppression of cell proliferation. Herein, we reported that CUR significantly induced DNA damage and mediated S and G2/M phase arrest in colorectal carcinoma HCT116 cells. Unlike etoposide, a classical topoisomerase II inhibitor, CUR-triggered G2/M phase arrest was hardly reversed by caffeine (CAFF) which is an inhibitor of activated ataxia-telangiectasia-mutated (ATM)/ATM- and Rad3-related (ATR), indicating that ATM and ATR signaling pathways may be not involved in CUR-mediated S and G2/M phase arrest in HCT116 cells. Furthermore, we demonstrated that CUR caused mitosis arrest in HCT116 cells by using mitotic protein monoclonal antibody-2 as a mitosis marker and the surface plasmon resonance assay. The findings provide new mechanisms of cell proliferation inhibition triggered by CUR in HCT116 cells.

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Abbreviations

APH:

Aphidicolin

ATM:

Ataxia-telangiectasia-mutated

ATR:

ATM- and Rad3-related

CAFF:

Caffeine

CUR:

Curcumin

NOC:

Nocodazole

VP16:

Etoposide

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Acknowledgments

We extremely thank Dr. Li Du, Dr. Li-Li Chen, Dr. Xuan Ren, and Dr. Na Yang for the technical help of SPR assay and Lin-Jiang Tong for the help of flow cytometry analysis. We also greatly thank BenJamin J. Danziger, University of Rochester, for revising the language.

Conflict of interest

We declare no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Anti-Tumor Pharmacology, State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Science, 555 Zu Chong Zhi Rd, Shanghai, 201203, People’s Republic of China

    Jin-Jian Lu, Yu-Jun Cai & Jian Ding

  2. College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, 310053, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China

    Jin-Jian Lu

Authors
  1. Jin-Jian Lu
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  2. Yu-Jun Cai
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  3. Jian Ding
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Correspondence to Yu-Jun Cai or Jian Ding.

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Lu, JJ., Cai, YJ. & Ding, J. Curcumin induces DNA damage and caffeine-insensitive cell cycle arrest in colorectal carcinoma HCT116 cells. Mol Cell Biochem 354, 247–252 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11010-011-0824-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11010-011-0824-3

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