Heterogeneous Differentiation of Highly Proliferative Embryonal Carcinoma PCC4 Cells Induced by Curcumin: An In Vitro Study

Abstract

Curcumin, the yellow pigment derived from turmeric rhizomes, exhibits antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and anticancer properties. We have previously reported in a study that curcumin could induce differentiation in embryonal carcinoma cell (EC). EC cells are the primary constituents of teratocarcinoma tumors, and hence differentiating them to a non-proliferative cell type may be useful in anticancer therapies. Here, we conducted a detailed study using various molecular approaches to characterize this differentiation at the cellular and molecular levels. The cells were treated with 20 µM curcumin, which was the optimal concentration to produce the highest amount of differentiated cells. Changes in protein and RNA expression, membrane dynamics, and migration of these cells after treatment with curcumin were then studied in a time-dependent manner. The differentiated cells were morphologically distinct from the precursor cells, and gene expression profiles were altered in curcumin-treated cells. Curcumin promoted cell motility and cell adhesion. Curcumin also induced changes in membrane fluidity and the lateral mobility of lipids in the plasma membrane. The findings of this study suggest that curcumin might have therapeutic potential in differentiation therapy for the treatment of teratocarcinomas or germ cell tumors (GCTs) such as testicular and ovarian GCTs.

Author contributions

Conceived and designed the experiments: GV UKS LYC. Performed the experiments: GV. Analyzed the data: GV UKS LYC.

Disclosure statement

The authors have declared that no conflict of interest exists.

Additional information

Funding

This research work was supported by the Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education’s HIR-MoHE grants [UM.C/625/1/HIR/MOHE/MED/17 and UM.C/625/1/HIR/MOHE/MED/33]. The authors also thank the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for a research grant awarded to UKS. GV was a recipient of the doctoral research scholarship from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Government of India.