Acta Pharmacologica Sinica 2006 September; 27 (9): 1192-1198; doi: 10.1111/j.1745-7254.2006.00374.x

Aim: To examine the effect of curcumin on oxidative DNA damage and cell apoptosis and injury caused by the reaction of methylglyoxal(MG) with amino acids.

Methods: We used DNA strand breaks to examine the effect of curcumin on oxidative DNA damage. In addition, reactive oxygen species(ROS) formation occurs in MG-treated mononuclear cells, so the effect of curcumin on ROS generation was measured using 2',7'-dichlorofluorescin diacetate(DCF-DA) as the detection reagent. Moreover, the impact effects of curcumin on MG-induced cell apoptosis and ROS injury were analyzed by TUNEL and ELISA assay. The collagen I attachment ability of mononuclear cells was examined by trypan blue staining.

Results: Our results revealed that curcumin prevented MG/lysine-induced oxidative stress and DNA damage. Curcumin also inhibited MG-induced apoptosis and generation of ROS in mononuclear cells. MG-treated mononuclear cells displayed a lower degree of attachment to collagen (the major component of the vessel wall subendo-thelium), whereas cells pretreated with curcumin before MG treatment exhibited restored affinities for collagen.

Conclusion: These results demonstrated that oxidative stress plays a role in MG-induced cell injury and alterations in attachment ability, and that curcumin blocks these effects by virtue of its antioxidant properties.

Keywords: curcumin; methylglyoxal; DNA damage; oxidative stress