Curry Could Treat Colorectal Cancer

The spice that gives curry its flavor, turmeric, may be an important component in treating colorectal cancer. Curcumin, the yellowish component of turmeric has long been identified as an anti cancer agent, but has yet to be applied in any meaningful way to treat the disease. However, new research from Tokoku University in Sendai, Japan indicates that the most potent parts of curcumin can be isolated, giving hope for a colorectal cancer drug derived from turmeric.

Curcumin has been identified as a natural substance that prevents cell growth by repressing genes and helps kill pro-cancerous protein. It also has been found to increase cell death in colorectal cancer.

"In addition to their chemopreventative abilities, these molecules [curcumin] might also form the basis of a potent chemotherapy, either alone or in combination with other modes of therapy," said Hiroyuki Shibata, associate professor in the Department of Clinical Oncology at the Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer at Tohoku University in a press release.

Yet, despite its potency, curcumin, once ingested loses much of what makes it effective in destructing cancer. Therefore, scientists have been working to isolate and protect the parts of the curcumin which help fight colorectal cancer. The researchers synthesized over 90 variations of the curcumin molecule and found two synthesized versions, GO-Y030 and GO-Y031, that were more powerful than the unaltered curcumin.

"Our new analogues have enhanced growth suppressive abilities against colorectal cancer cell lines, up to 30 times greater than natural curcumin," said Shibata in a press release.

For the study, only testing on mice has been completed with the synthesized curcumin. No human testing with the synthesized curcumin has occurred.

"In a mouse model for colorectal cancer, mice fed with five milligrams of GO-Y030 or GO-Y031 fared 42 and 51 percent better, respectively, than did mice in the control group," announced Shibata in a press release detailing the results of this study.

In addition to the promising results for colorectal cancer, the researchers believe that the anti-cancer properties of curcumin could extend to other types forms of the disease.

"In addition to colorectal cancer, the â catenin-degrading abilities of these molecules could apply to other forms of cancer, such as gastric cancer. Like curcumin, these analogues also down-regulate a number of gene products... that are also implicated in breast, pancreas and lung cancers among other diseases," concluded Shibata in the press release.

The results of the synthesized curcumin on mice with colorectal cancer were presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Centennial Conference on Translational Cancer Medicine.

Sources:

American Association for Cancer Research, "Curry-derived molecules might be too spicy for colorectal cancers" Eurekalert