Curcumin potentiates antitumor activity of L-asparaginase via inhibition of the AKT signaling pathway in acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Leuk Lymphoma. 2012 Jul;53(7):1376-82. doi: 10.3109/10428194.2011.649478. Epub 2012 Jan 25.

Abstract

L-asparaginase (L-ASP) is a universal component of therapy for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Curcumin is a naturally occurring yellow pigment that is derived from the rhizome of Curcuma longa. In this study, we evaluated the cytotoxicity of the combined treatment of L-ASP and curcumin in three ALL cell lines. Synergistic cytotoxicity was observed in all three cell lines following the combined treatment of curcumin and L-ASP. Our results revealed that curcumin significantly enhanced the antitumor effect of L-ASP in the three ALL cell lines compared to that for L-ASP alone ( p < 0.05). Curcumin and L-ASP co-treatments induced apoptosis, via activation and cleavage of caspase-8 and BID cleavage accompanied by release of cytochrome c and activation of caspase-9/3, compared to the group treated with only L-ASP and the control group. Furthermore, the combination of curcumin and L-ASP led to significant reductions in phosphorylated AKT and expression of AKT-regulated gene products (FoxO1, GSK3β, IKKα, NF-κB, XIAP) compared with the group treated with only L-ASP and the control group. Overall, our findings suggest that curcumin potentiates the antitumor effects of L-ASP in acute lymphoblastic leukemia by constitutively inhibiting AKT and AKT-regulated gene products.

MeSH terms

  • Antineoplastic Agents / pharmacology
  • Apoptosis / drug effects
  • Asparaginase / pharmacology*
  • Blotting, Western
  • Caspases / metabolism
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Proliferation / drug effects
  • Cell Survival / drug effects
  • Curcumin / pharmacology*
  • Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
  • Drug Synergism
  • Flow Cytometry
  • Humans
  • Inhibitory Concentration 50
  • Jurkat Cells
  • Phosphorylation / drug effects
  • Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / genetics
  • Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / metabolism
  • Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / pathology
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt / metabolism*
  • Signal Transduction / drug effects*

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt
  • Caspases
  • Asparaginase
  • Curcumin