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Review
. 2014 Dec;6(4):139-46.
doi: 10.1556/IMAS.6.2014.4.1. Epub 2014 Dec 22.

Curcumin a potent cancer preventive agent: Mechanisms of cancer cell killing

Muobarak Jaber Tuorkey  1
Affiliations
Review

Curcumin a potent cancer preventive agent: Mechanisms of cancer cell killing

Muobarak Jaber Tuorkey. Interv Med Appl Sci. 2014 Dec.

Abstract

There is no doubt that diet could effectively improve health and halt cancers. Dietary phytochemical compounds and their derivatives represent a cornucopia of effectively anticancer compounds. This review discusses existing data on the anticancer activities of curcumin, and then offers possible explanations for and mechanisms of its cancer-preventive action. This review also offers insights into the molecular mechanism and targets through which curcumin modulates cell cycle, apoptotic signals, anti-apoptotic proteins, miRNAs, Wnt/beta-catenin signaling, protein kinases, nuclear factor-κB, proteasome activation, epigenetic regulation including DNA methylation and histone modification. Finally, this review provides explanations for how curcumin reverses the multi-drug resistance (MDR) of cancer cells.

Keywords: DNA methylation; apoptotic signals; cell cycle arrest; histone modification; miRNAs; proteasomes.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: The author declares no conflict of interest.

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