curcumin and Carcinoma--Lewis-Lung

Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer mortality. Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) are potent immune-suppressive cells and present in most cancer patients. Recently, several studies have shown that curcumin inhibits the expansion of MDSCs in some cancers. However, it is not clear how curcumin modulates the suppressive function of MDSCs, and whether curcumin achieves anti-tumor effects via regulating the expansion of MDSCs in lung cancer. Here, our results showed that curcumin significantly inhibited tumor growth in a Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) isogenic tumor model. Curcumin reduced the accumulation of MDSCs in spleen and tumor tissue in LLC isogenic model. And curcumin promoted the maturation and differentiation of MDSCs in tumor tissue. Notably, curcumin inhibited the expression level of immune suppressive factors of MDSCs, arginase-1 (Arg-1) and ROS, in purified MDSCs from tumor tissue in vivo. Expectedly, curcumin also inhibited the immunosuppressive function of isolated MDSCs from tumor tissue and spleen of tumor bearing mice in vitro. Moreover, curcumin decreased the level of IL-6 in the tumor tissue and serum from LLC-bearing mice. Taken together, curcumin indeed possesses anti-cancer effect and inhibits the accumulation and function of MDSCs. And curcumin reduces the level of IL-6 in tumor-bearing mice to impair the expansion and function of MDSCs. These results suggest that inhibition of MDSCs in tumor is requisite for controlling lung cancer.

Topics: Animals; Antineoplastic Agents; Arginase; Carcinoma, Lewis Lung; Cell Differentiation; Curcumin; Female; Humans; Interleukin-6; Lung Neoplasms; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells; Neoplasm Transplantation; Reactive Oxygen Species; Tumor Burden

The aim of this study was to investigate the angiogenic effects of curcumin on an ischemia and lung cancer model. To induce ischemia combined with lung cancer models, unilateral femoral arteries of C57BL/6 mice were disconnected on one side of the mouse and Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) cells were xenografted on the opposite side. Angiogenic effects and underlying mechanisms associated with curcumin were investigated. Molecular target(s), signaling cascades and binding affinities were detected by Western blot, two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE), computer simulations and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) techniques. Curcumin promoted post-ischemic blood recirculation and suppressed lung cancer progression in inbred C57BL/6 mice via regulation of the HIF1α/mTOR/VEGF/VEGFR cascade oppositely. Inflammatory stimulation induced by neutrophil elastase (NE) promoted angiogenesis in lung cancer tissues, but these changes were reversed by curcumin through directly reducing NE secretion and stimulating α1-antitrypsin (α1-AT) and insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1) production. Meanwhile, curcumin dose-dependently influenced endothelial cells (EC) tube formation and chicken embryo chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) neovascularization. Curcumin had opposite effects on blood vessel regeneration under physiological and pathological angiogenesis, which was effected through negative or positive regulation of the HIF1α/mTOR/VEGF/VEGFR cascade. Curcumin had the promise as a new treatment modality for both ischemic conditions and lung cancer simultaneously in the clinic.

Topics: Animals; Antineoplastic Agents; Apoptosis; Biomarkers; Blotting, Western; Carcinoma, Lewis Lung; Cell Movement; Cell Proliferation; Cells, Cultured; Chick Embryo; Chorioallantoic Membrane; Computer Simulation; Curcumin; Electrophoresis, Gel, Two-Dimensional; Endothelium, Vascular; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; Female; Hindlimb; Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha Subunit; Immunoenzyme Techniques; Immunoprecipitation; In Vitro Techniques; Ischemia; Lung Neoplasms; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Neovascularization, Pathologic; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; RNA, Messenger; Signal Transduction; Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization; Surface Plasmon Resonance; TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor-1

Coptidis Rhizoma and Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix represent hot Chinese medicine and cold Chinese medicine respectively. The purpose of this study is to observe the differentiation effect of Coptidis Rhizoma and Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix on lewis lung cancer and compare effect of hot Chinese medicine and cold Chinese medicine on tumor progression. In this study, the rat serum containing Coptidis Rhizoma or Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix was prepared to treat lewis lung cancer cells in vitro, and effects of the serum containing Coptidis Rhizoma or Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix on cell differentiation, proliferation, adhesion, succinic dehydrogenase (SDH) activity and gap-junction intercellular communication (GJIC) were investigated. In vivo, the subcutaneous implant model and pulmonary metastasis model of lewis lung cancer were established. Tumor bearing mice were taken water decoction of coptis chinensis or aconite by intragastric administration bid for four weeks, and the influences of coptis chinensis and aconite on tumor progression were evaluated by body temperature, blood oxygen saturation, red cell ATPase, blood rheology, intratumor hypoxia, capillary permeability and GJIC. The results showed that the serum containing aconite could induce cell differentiation, inhibit cell proliferation and migration, promote SDH activity and GJIC in lewis lung cancer cells. The serum containing Coptidis Rhizoma increased cell adhesion and decreased SDH activity and GJIC without cell differentiation although it also suppressed cell proliferation. Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix water decoction could keep body temperature, blood oxygen saturation, red cell ATPase and blood rheology, and improve intratumor hypoxia, capillary permeability and GJIC in tumor bearing mice, which led to slower tumor growth and less metastasis. Coptidis Rhizoma water decoction decreased body temperature, blood oxygen saturation, red cell ATPase, blood rheology and GJIC, and promoted intratumor hypoxia and capillary permeability, which resulted to more tumor metastasis although it also prevented tumor growth. These results suggested that the hot Chinese medicine could induce tumor cell differentiation and prevent tumor poison invagination, which is better for tumor treatment than cold Chinese medicine.

Topics: Aconitum; Animals; Antineoplastic Agents; Carcinoma, Lewis Lung; Cell Differentiation; Cell Line, Tumor; Curcuma; Drugs, Chinese Herbal; Mice; Neoplasm Metastasis; Rats; Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays

Curcumin previously was proven to inhibit angiogenesis and display potent antitumor activity in vivo and in vitro. In the present study, we investigated whether a combination curcumin with hyperthermia would have a synergistic antitumor effect in the LL/2 model. The results indicated that combination therapy significantly inhibited cell proliferation of MS-1 and LL/2 in vitro. LL/2 experiment model also demonstrated that the combination therapy inhibited tumor growth and prolonged the life span in vivo. Furthermore, combination therapy reduced angiogenesis and increased tumor apoptosis. Our findings suggest that the combination therapy exerted synergistic antitumor effects, providing a new perspective fpr clinical tumor therapy.

Topics: Animals; Antineoplastic Agents; Apoptosis; Blotting, Western; Carcinoma, Lewis Lung; Cell Proliferation; Combined Modality Therapy; Curcumin; Female; Fluorescent Antibody Technique; Hyperthermia, Induced; Liposomes; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Neovascularization, Pathologic

The present study investigated the effects of curcumin on bone microstructure in non-tumor-bearing and Lewis lung carcinoma-(LLC)-bearing female C57BL/6 mice. Morphometric analysis showed that dietary supplementation with curcumin (2% or 4%) significantly reduced the bone volume to total volume ratio, connectivity density and trabecular number, and significantly increased the structure model index (an indicator of the plate- and rod-like geometry of trabecular structure) and trabecular separation in vertebral bodies compared to controls in both non-tumor-bearing and LLC-bearing mice. Similar changes in trabecular bone were observed in the femoral bone in curcumin-fed mice. Curcumin significantly reduced the cortical bone area to total area ratio and cortical thickness in femoral mid-shaft, but not in vertebral bodies, in both non-tumor-bearing and LLC-bearing mice. Curcumin feeding reduced plasma concentrations of osteocalcin and increased tartrate-resistant acid phosphate 5b in mice regardless of the presence of LLC, indicating that curcumin disrupts the balance of bone remodeling. Our results demonstrated that curcumin reduced the trabecular bone volume and cortical bone density. The skeleton is a favored site of metastasis for many types of cancers, and curcumin has been investigated in clinical trials in patients with cancer for its chemopreventive effects. Our results suggest the possibility of a combined effect of cancer-induced osteolysis and curcumin-stimulated bone loss in patients using curcumin. The assessment of bone structural changes should be considered for those who participate in curcumin clinical trials to determine its effects on skeleton health, particularly for those with advanced malignancies.

Topics: Acid Phosphatase; Animals; Body Composition; Body Weight; Bone and Bones; Carcinoma, Lewis Lung; Curcumin; Dietary Supplements; Energy Intake; Female; Femur; Isoenzymes; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Osteocalcin; Spine; Tartrate-Resistant Acid Phosphatase

Our study investigated the effects of dietary supplementation with curcumin [(1E,6E)-1,7-bis(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-1,6-heptadiene-3,5-dione] on spontaneous metastasis of Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) in C57BL/6 mice. Mice were fed with the AIN93G control diet or with the diet supplemented with 2 or 4% curcumin for 5 weeks at which time they were injected subcutaneously with 2.5 × 10(5) viable LLC cells. The subcutaneous primary tumor was surgically removed when it reached ~ 8 mm in diameter, and the experiment was terminated 10 days after the surgery. There was no difference in pulmonary metastatic yield among the groups. Curcumin supplementation at either dietary level did not significantly increase the size of metastatic tumors; however, the combined data from both curcumin groups showed that curcumin treatment increased metastatic tumor cross-sectional area by 46% (p < 0.05) and volume by 70% (p < 0.05) compared to the controls. Curcumin supplementation increased plasma concentrations of angiogenic factors angiogenin (p < 0.05), basic fibroblast growth factor (p < 0.05) and vascular endothelial growth factor (p < 0.05), as well as inflammatory cytokines interleukin-1β (p < 0.05) and monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (p < 0.05), compared to the controls. These results demonstrate that curcumin does not prevent metastasis and indicate that it can enhance metastatic growth of LLC in mice, perhaps through upregulation of angiogenesis and inflammation.

Topics: Administration, Oral; Analysis of Variance; Angiogenic Proteins; Animals; Antineoplastic Agents; Carcinoma, Lewis Lung; Cell Line, Tumor; Curcumin; Dietary Supplements; Drug Evaluation, Preclinical; Female; Inflammation Mediators; Lung Neoplasms; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Neoplasm Transplantation; Tumor Burden

Lung carcinogenesis is a complex process in an unregulated inflammatory environment. Curcumin has been extensively investigated as a multi-target anti-tumor and anti-inflammation compound. In this paper, we demonstrate a novel inflammation-related mechanism for curcumin-induced inhibition of lung tumor growth. We found that neutrophil elastase, an important regulator of inflammatory processes, directly triggered tumor cell proliferation in human lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells, and curcumin could completely suppress the excess tumor proliferation induced by neutrophil elastase. α1-antitrypsin is synthesized by tumor cells and is the natural inhibitor of neutrophil elastase. We found that curcumin counteracted the decrease of α1-antitrypsin induced by neutrophil elastase by inducing the promoter activity of α1-antitrypsin and promoting its expression in A549 cells. The inhibition of neutrophil elastase-induced proliferation by curcumin was dependent on the PI3K/Akt pathway. Knockdown of α1-antitrypsin by siRNA further enhanced the tumor cell proliferation induced by neutrophil elastase and significantly blocked the anti-proliferation effect of curcumin against neutrophil elastase. Curcumin remarkably inhibited the primary tumor growth of Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) in C57BL/6 mice. We further showed that curcumin upregulated the level of α1-antitrypsin in primary tumor tissue by promoting its local expression, and the protein level of neutrophil elastase in tumor tissue was obviously decreased in mice treated with curcumin. Overall, our results suggest that neutrophil elastase and α1-antitrypsin play important roles in modulating lung tumor proliferation in inflammatory microenvironment and curcumin inhibits neutrophil elastase-induced tumor proliferation via upregulating α1-antitrypsin expression in vitro and in vivo.

Topics: alpha 1-Antitrypsin; Animals; Carcinoma, Lewis Lung; Cell Line, Tumor; Cell Proliferation; Curcumin; Female; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; Gene Knockdown Techniques; Humans; Leukocyte Elastase; Lung Neoplasms; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Neoplasm Metastasis; Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; RNA, Small Interfering; Signal Transduction; Up-Regulation

Radiation pneumonitis (RP) is an important dose-limiting toxicity during thoracic radiotherapy. Previous investigations have shown that curcumin is used for the treatment of inflammatory conditions and cancer, suggesting that curcumin may prevent RP and sensitize cancer cells to irradiation. However, the clinical advancement of curcumin is limited by its poor water solubility and low bioavailability after oral administration. Here, a water-soluble liposomal curcumin system was developed to investigate its prevention and sensitizing effects by an intravenous administration manner in mice models. The results showed that liposomal curcumin inhibited nuclear factor-κB pathway and downregulated inflammatory factors including tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8, and transforming growth factor-β induced by thoracic irradiation. Furthermore, the combined treatment with liposomal curcumin and radiotherapy increased intratumoral apoptosis and microvessel responses to irradiation in vivo. The significantly enhanced inhibition of tumor growth also was observed in a murine lung carcinoma (LL/2) model. There were no obvious toxicities observed in mice. The current results indicate that liposomal curcumin can effectively mitigate RP, reduce the fibrosis of lung, and sensitize LL/2 cells to irradiation. This study also suggests that the systemic administration of liposomal curcumin is safe and deserves to be investigated for further clinical application.

Topics: Adenocarcinoma; Adenocarcinoma of Lung; Analysis of Variance; Animals; Carcinoma, Lewis Lung; Cell Line, Tumor; Combined Modality Therapy; Curcumin; Cytokines; Histocytochemistry; Liposomes; Lung Neoplasms; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Neovascularization, Pathologic; Radiation Pneumonitis; Radiation-Sensitizing Agents; Radiography, Thoracic

Curcumin, a yellow pigment extracted from turmeric, is widely used to inhibit tumor progression. Since it can either promote or suppress the immune system, how curcumin affects the immune system in tumor-bearing bodies is not yet clear. Our study found that tumor-bearing mice treated consecutively once a day with low-dose curcumin for ten days led to a retarded tumor growth and a longer survival, which might be contributed to T cell-mediated adaptive immune response. The in vitro study also showed that a high-dose curcumin decreases T cells whereas a low-dose increases T cells derived from 3LL tumor-bearing mice, especially CD8+ T cells. Accordingly, these increased CD8+ T cells exhibited the enhancement of IFN-γ secretion, proliferation and cytotoxicity specifically against 3LL tumor cells, which may result in the success of antitumor immunity. Our research demonstrated a beneficial effect of curcumin on CD8+ T cells derived from tumor-bearing mice, which can provide a potential application in anti-tumor therapy.

Topics: Adaptive Immunity; Animals; Carcinoma, Lewis Lung; Cell Growth Processes; Cell Line, Tumor; Cells, Cultured; Curcumin; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Female; Interferon-gamma; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Mice, Nude; Neoplasms, Experimental; T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic; Up-Regulation

The effectiveness of lung radiotherapy is limited by radiation tolerance of normal tissues and by the intrinsic radiosensitivity of lung cancer cells. The chemopreventive agent curcumin has known antioxidant and tumor cell radiosensitizing properties. Its usefulness in preventing radiation-induced pneumonopathy has not been tested previously. We evaluated dietary curcumin in radiation-induced pneumonopathy and lung tumor regression in a murine model. Mice were given 1% or 5% (w/w) dietary curcumin or control diet prior to irradiation and for the duration of the experiment. Lungs were evaluated at 3 weeks after irradiation for acute lung injury and inflammation by evaluating bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid content for proteins, neutrophils and at 4 months for pulmonary fibrosis. In a separate series of experiments, an orthotopic model of lung cancer using intravenously injected Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) cells was used to exclude possible tumor radioprotection by dietary curcumin. In vitro, curcumin boosted antioxidant defenses by increasing heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1) levels in primary lung endothelial and fibroblast cells and blocked radiation-induced generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Dietary curcumin significantly increased HO-1 in lungs as early as after 1 week of feeding, coinciding with a steady-state level of curcumin in plasma. Although both 1% and 5% w/w dietary curcumin exerted physiological changes in lung tissues by significantly decreasing LPS-induced TNF-alpha production in lungs, only 5% dietary curcumin significantly improved survival of mice after irradiation and decreased radiation-induced lung fibrosis. Importantly, dietary curcumin did not protect LLC pulmonary metastases from radiation killing. Thus dietary curcumin ameliorates radiation-induced pulmonary fibrosis and increases mouse survival while not impairing tumor cell killing by radiation.

Topics: Administration, Oral; Animals; Antioxidants; Blotting, Western; Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid; Carcinoma, Lewis Lung; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Curcumin; Female; Heme Oxygenase (Decyclizing); Lung; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Pulmonary Fibrosis; Radiation Injuries; Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization; Survival Analysis; Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Orthotopic implantation of a metastatic cell line of Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC-MLN), which was isolated by an in vivo selection method, resulted in greater metastatic growth in mediastinal lymph nodes as compared with that of the original LLC cells. LLC-MLN cells also had increased invasive ability and activator protein-1 (AP-1) transcriptional activity as compared with the original LLC cells. This is well consistent with the previously reported finding that overexpression of AP-1 is associated with lymphatic metastasis in lung cancer patients. Oral administration of curcumin, which downregulates AP-1 transcription, significantly inhibited the mediastinal lymph node metastasis of orthotopically implanted LLC cells in a dose-dependent manner, but did not affect the tumor growth at the implantation site. Combined treatment with curcumin and an anti-cancer drug, cis-diamine-dichloroplatinum (CDDP), resulted in a marked inhibition of tumor growth at the implanted site and of lymphatic metastasis, and a significant prolongation of the survival time. The downregulation of transcriptional AP-1 activity by curcumin as seen in the dual luciferase assay caused inhibition of LLC cell invasion through the repression of expression of the mRNAs for urokinase-type plasminogen activator (u-PA) and its receptor (u-PAR). Inhibition of AP-1 transcriptional activity may offer improved therapeutic efficacy for lung cancer patients with lymphatic metastasis.

Topics: Animals; Antineoplastic Agents; Carcinoma, Lewis Lung; Cell Division; Cisplatin; Curcumin; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Female; Kinetics; Lung Neoplasms; Lymphatic Metastasis; Mediastinal Neoplasms; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Neoplasm Invasiveness; Receptors, Cell Surface; Receptors, Urokinase Plasminogen Activator; RNA, Neoplasm; Transcription Factor AP-1; Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator