Table 5.
Summary of the effects of curcumin on endometriosis in in vitro studies.
| Type of Model | Treatment and Treatment Duration |
Findings | References |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cell culture of human endometriotic stromal cells from women with stage III/IV endometriosis | (1) 1, 10, 30 and 50 μM of curcumin (2) 30 μM of curcumin + 15 ng/mL of TNF-α primary (1) 24 h (2) Curcumin for 1 h and stimulated with TNF-α for 15 h for ELISA |
-Curcumin did not affect the viability of endometriotic stromal cells at doses up to 50 μM -Pre-treatment with curcumin significantly suppressed TNF-α-induced ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 mRNA expression in a dose-dependent manner -Curcumin significantly suppressed TNF-α-induced ICAM-1 VCAM-1 cell surface expression in a dose-dependent manner -Pre-treatment with curcumin (30 μM) markedly suppressed TNF-α-induced total cellular protein expression of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 -Curcumin (30 μM) suppressed the TNF-α-induced IL-6, IL-8 and MCP-1 from endometriotic stromal cells -Pre-treatment with curcumin (30 μM) blocked the TNF-α-induced nuclear translocation of NF-κB p65 from the cytosol into the nucleus and strongly inhibited TNF-α-induced phosphorylation and degradation of IκB -Curcumin (30 μM) significantly reduced the density of the NF-κB shifted band that was induced by TNF-α |
[82] |
| Primary cell culture of human endometriotic stromal cells from women with endometriosis (EESCs) and normal endometrial stromal cells (NESCs) | (1) 1, 5, 10, 20 and 40 μg/mL of curcumin (2) DMSO as vehicle 24, 48 and 72 h |
-100% apoptotic cell deaths at 40 μg/mL of curcumin but < 20 μg/mL had no significant apoptotic effects on endometrial stromal cells (ESCs) -IL-6, IL-8, IP-10, G-CSF, MCP-1 and RANTES were highly expressed in EESCs -IL-10 and IL-12 expressions were not different in both EESCs and NESCs -Curcumin treatment significantly inhibited secretion of IL-6, IL-8, IP-10, G-CSF, MCP-1 and RANTES in EESCs after 48 h -Curcumin significantly promoted IL-10 and IL-12 secretion in EESCs after 48 h -IL-17 was completely absent in the media after treatment with curcumin for 24 and 48 h -Curcumin inhibited the phosphorylation of IKKα, IKKβ and NF-κB in EESCs -Curcumin treatment significantly inhibited the phosphorylation of JNK and STAT3 in EESCs -JNK expression significantly decreased after curcumin treatment |
[83] |
| Bovine cumulus–oocyte complex cultured in a TCM 199 plus peritoneal fluid of infertile women with endometriosis | (1) TCM199 (control) (2) TCM199 + peritoneal fluid (PF) (3) TCM199 + PF + 0.2 mL curcumin 24 h |
-GDF-9 and Kit Ligand expressions were higher in the treated group than in the non-treated group but decreased compared with the control group -TNFα expression in bovine COC cultured in PF from infertile women with endometriosis was reduced compared with those in the non-treated group -TNF-α was absent in the control group |
[84] |
| Endometriotic stromal cells, normal endometrial stromal cells, endometriotic epithelial cells and normal endometrial epithelial cells | 10, 30 and 50 μM of curcumin (2) 10 μL of WST-8 0, 24, 48, 72 and 96 h of curcumin treatment Oestradiol (E2) assay: 24 h incubation period ELISA: WST-8 for 4 h |
-E2 value of endometriotic epithelial cells was higher than the endometriotic stromal cells -Expression of E2 in normal endometrial stromal and epithelial cells was extremely low -WST-8 result showed that compared with endometrial stromal cells, ectopic endometriotic stromal cells had a higher growth rate -The number of endometriotic stromal cells was reduced, and cell growth slowed compared with the 0 μmol/L group after curcumin treatment -Compared with the 0 μmol/L group, E2 level was lower after treatment with curcumin, especially in the 30 and 50 μmol/L groups |
[85] |
| Primary cell culture of human endometriotic stromal cells from women with endometriosis and eutopic endometrial stromal cells with no endometriosis | 0, 20 and 50 μmol/l of curcumin 48 h 72 h (for immunostaining assay) |
-Cell morphology between ectopic and eutopic stromal cells was similar (spindle-shaped, abundant cytoplasm and oval-shaped nucleus); positive vimentin biomarker -Altered morphology, reduced permeability and increased cell suspension at 20 μmol/l curcumin after 48 h -Adherent cell decreased; a significant increase in cell suspension and presence of cell debris at 50 μmol/l curcumin after 48 h -Curcumin decreased the eutopic and ectopic cell growth -At 20 and 50 μmol/l curcumin after 48 h, endometriotic and endometrial stromal cells demonstrated increased percentages of G1-phase cells and decreased percentages of S-phase cells -Treatment with 20 and 50 μmol/l curcumin decreased the proportion of VEGF positive expression compared with the 0 μmol/l group -More in late apoptosis than early apoptosis in both endometriotic and endometrial cells |
[86] |
Abbreviation: TNF-α: tumor necrosis factor-α; ICAM-1: intracellular adhesion molecule-1; VCAM-1: vascular cell adhesion protein-1; IL-6: interleukin-6; IL-8: interleukin-8; MCP-1: monocyte chemoattractant protein-1; NF-κB: nuclear factor κ-light-chain-enhancer of activated B; IκB: inhibitor nuclear factor of kappa B; IP-10: interferon gamma induced protein 10; G-CSF: granulocyte colony stimulating factor; IKKα/β: inhibitor of nuclear factor κ-B kinase subunit α/β; RANTES: regulated upon activation, normal T cell expressed and presumably secreted; JNK: c-Jun N-terminal kinases; STAT3: signal transducer and activator of transcription 3; TCM199: tissue culture medium 199; GDF-9: growth differentiation factor-9; COC: cumulus-oocyte complex; WST-8: cell counting kit 8.