New structural analogues of curcumin exhibit potent growth suppressive activity in human colorectal carcinoma cells

We compared the inhibitory effects of curcumin and novel structural analogues, GO-Y030, FLLL-11, and FLLL-12, in three independent human colorectal cancer cell lines, SW480, HT-29, and HCT116. MTT cell viability assay was used to examine the cell viability/proliferation and western blots were used to determine the level of PARP cleavages. Half-Maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC50) were calculated using Sigma Plot 9.0 software.Curcumin inhibited cell viability in all three of the human colorectal cancer cell lines studied with IC50 values ranging between 10.26 μM and 13.31 μM. GO-Y030, FLLL-11, and FLLL-12 were more potent than curcumin in the inhibition of cell viability in these three human colorectal cancer cell lines with IC50 values ranging between 0.51 μM and 4.48 μM. In addition, FLLL-11 and FLLL-12 exhibit low toxicity to WI-38 normal human lung fibroblasts with an IC-50 value greater than 1,000 μM. GO-Y030, FLLL-11, and FLLL-12 are also more potent than curcumin in the induction of apoptosis, as evidenced by cleaved PARP and cleaved caspase-3 in all three human colorectal cancer cell lines studied.The results indicate that the three curcumin analogues studied exhibit more potent inhibitory activity than curcumin in human colorectal cancer cells. Thus, they may have translational potential as chemopreventive or therapeutic agents for colorectal carcinoma.In the United States, colorectal cancer is the third most frequently occurring cancer in both sexes and overall is the second leading cause of cancer deaths. The lifetime probability of developing colorectal cancer is about 5% in the United States. Despite advances in the treatment of colorectal cancer, the five-year survival rate has only increased to 65% [1]. Hence, better approaches for the prevention and treatment of colorectal cancer are needed.Curcumin has been shown to protect against carcinogenesis and to prevent tumor formation and development in several cancer types. It has also been shown to sup