Curcumin combined with oxaliplatin inhibits cell proliferation and induces apoptosis in human colorectal cancer cell line RKO

AIM:To explore whether curcumin and oxaliplatin have a synergistic effect on cell proliferation and apoptosis in human colorectal cancer cell line RKO.METHODS:RKO cells were treated with curcumin and/or oxaliplatin.Cell proliferation was assessed by MTT assay.Cell apoptosis was determined using flow cytometry.Expression of apoptosis-related proteins was detected by Western blot.RESULTS:The IC50 of curcumin in RKO cells at 24,48 and 72 h after treatment were 64.14 mol/ L ± 3.97 mol/L,34.02 mol/L ± 2.47 mol/L and 18.66 mol/L ± 0.29 mol/L,respectively.The IC50 of oxaliplatin at 24,48 and 72 h were 36.97 g/mL ± 1.26 g/mL,20.34 g/mL ± 2.29 g/mL and 9.92 g/mL ± 0.92 g/mL,respectively.Curcumin(20 mol/L) and oxaliplatin(10 g/mL) synergistically inhibited cell proliferation and induced cell apoptosis.The expression of cleaved PARP,caspase 3,and caspase 8 was up-regulated after the combination treatment.CONCLUSION:Curcumin combined with oxaliplatin inhibits cell proliferation and promotes cell apoptosis by regulating apoptosis-related protein expression in human colorectal cancer cell line RKO.