Antiproliferative activity and apoptosis-inducing mechanism of Curcuma longa (Turmimax®) on Hela cell lines

Abstract

Abstract Turmeric's main ingredient, curcumin (diferuloylmethane), is a polyphenol obtained from the Curcuma longa plant. Since curcumin is nontoxic and has a wide range of medicinal qualities, including antioxidant, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and antibacterial action, it has been widely employed in Ayurvedic medicine for ages. Curcumin has recently been discovered to have anti-cancer properties through its impact on numerous biological pathways that are involved in carcinogenesis, metastasis, tumorigenesis, cell cycle regulation, mutagenesis, and oncogene expression. In this study, we determined the antiproliferative activity and apoptosis-inducing mechanism of C. longa (Turmimax®) on human cancer cells. The cytotoxic effect was evaluated against HeLa cell lines using the MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) assay. A flow cytometric analysis was performed to detect apoptotic cell death. Turmimax® exhibits promising properties as a potential anti-cancer therapeutic agent in human cervical adenocarcinomas and possibly other cancer types, with an IC50 value of 87.89µg/mL. In HeLa cells treated with Turmimax®, cell cycle arrest was seen at the G0/G1 and S phases. By inducing apoptosis and increasing the number of apoptotic cells in a dose-dependent manner, the experimental data suggest that Turmimax® has considerable promise in the prevention and treatment of cancer.