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Anti-Cancer Agents in Medicinal Chemistry

Editor-in-Chief

ISSN (Print): 1871-5206
ISSN (Online): 1875-5992

Dendrimer-Curcumin Conjugate: A Water Soluble and Effective Cytotoxic Agent Against Breast Cancer Cell Lines

Author(s): Shawon Debnath, Darin Saloum, Sukanta Dolai, Chong Sun, Saadyah Averick, Krishnaswami Raja and Jimmie E. Fata

Volume 13, Issue 10, 2013

Page: [1531 - 1539] Pages: 9

DOI: 10.2174/18715206113139990139

Price: $65

Abstract

Curcumin, which is derived from the plant Curcuma longa, has received considerable attention as a possible anti-cancer agent. In cell culture, curcumin is capable of inducing apoptosis in cancer cells at concentrations that do not affect normal cells. One draw-back holding curcumin back from being an effective anti-cancer agent in humans is that it is almost completely insoluble in water and therefore has poor absorption and subsequently poor bioavailability. Here we have generated a number of curcumin derivatives (tetrahydro-curcumin, curcumin mono-carboxylic acid, curcumin mono-galactose, curcumin mono-alkyne and dendrimer-curcumin conjugate) to test whether any of them display both cytotoxicity and water solubility. Of those tested only dendrimer-curcumin conjugate exhibited both water solubility and cytotoxicity against SKBr3 and BT549 breast cancer cells. When compared to curcumin dissolved in DMSO, dendrimer-curcumin conjugate dissolved in water was significantly more effective in inducing cytotoxicity, as measured by the MTT assay and effectively induced cellular apoptosis measured by caspase-3 activation. Since dendrimer-curcumin conjugate is water soluble and capable of inducing potent cytotoxic effects on breast cancer cell lines, it may prove to be an effective anti-cancer therapy to be used in humans.

Keywords: Apoptosis, breast cancer, curcumin, dendrimer, solubility.


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