Review on Various Biological Activities of Curcumin

Curcumin, a yellow substance belonging to the polyphenols super family, is the active component of turmeric, a common Indian spice, which is derived from the dried rhizome of the Curcuma longa plant. Numerous studies have demonstrated that curcumin possesses anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and anticancerous properties. The purpose of this review is to focus on the anti-tumor effects of curcumin. Curcumin inhibits the STAT3 and NF-ĸB signaling pathways, which play key-roles in cancer development and progression. Also, inhibition of Sp-1 and its housekeeping gene expressions may serve as an important hypothesis to prevent cancer formation, migration, and invasion. Recent data have suggested that curcumin may act by suppressing the Sp-1 activation and its downstream genes, includingADEM10, calmodulin, EPHB2, HDAC4, and SEPP1 in a concentration- dependent manner in colorectal cancer cell lines; these results are consistent with other studies, which have reported that curcumin could suppress the Sp. Clinical trials of curcumin have been completed or are ongoing for various types of cancer. This review presents the molecular mechanisms of curcumin indifferent types of cancer and the evidence from the most recent clinical trials.