• DOI:10.1093/CARCIN/18.1.83
• Corpus ID: 46440051

Inhibitory effects of topical application of low doses of curcumin on 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate-induced tumor promotion and oxidized DNA bases in mouse epidermis.

@article{Huang1997InhibitoryEO,
  title={Inhibitory effects of topical application of low doses of curcumin on 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate-induced tumor promotion and oxidized DNA bases in mouse epidermis.},
  author={M. T. Huang and W Ma and Paul Yen and J G Xie and J S Han and Krystyna Frenkel and Dezider Grunberger and Allan H. Conney},
  journal={Carcinogenesis},
  year={1997},
  volume={18 1},
  pages={
          83-8
        }
}

• M. Huang, W. Ma, +5 authors A. Conney
• Published 1997
• Biology, Chemistry, Medicine
• Carcinogenesis

The effects of topical applications of very low doses of curcumin (the major yellow pigment in turmeric and the Indian food curry) on 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA)-induced oxidation of DNA bases in the epidermis and on tumor promotion in mouse skin were investigated. CD-1 mice were treated topically with 200 nmol of 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene followed one week later by 5 nmol of TPA alone or together with 1, 10, 100 or 3000 nmol of curcumin twice a week for 20 weeks. Curcumin-mediated effects on TPA-induced formation of the oxidized DNA base 5-hydroxymethyl-2'-deoxyuridine (HMdU) and tumor formation were determined. All dose levels of curcumin inhibited the mean values of TPA-induced HMdU formation in epidermal DNA (62-77% inhibition), but only the two highest doses of curcumin strongly inhibited TPA-induced tumor promotion (62-79% inhibition of tumors per mouse and tumor volume per mouse). In a second experiment, topical application of 20 or 100 nmol (but not 10 nmol) of curcumin together with 5 nmol TPA twice a week for 18 weeks markedly inhibited TPA-induced tumor promotion. Curcumin had a strong inhibitory effect on DNA and RNA synthesis (IC50 = 0.5-1 microM) in cultured HeLa cells, but there was little or no effect on protein synthesis.