A Novel Molecular and Cellular Study on Curcumin

Since the discovery of G-quartet (G4)by M. Gellertin 1962, much attention has been given on G4and C4(also called i-motif) as important drug design targets for the treatment of various human disorders. G4 forming sequences are prevalent in human genome, which includes many important regions of the eukaryotic genome, such as telomere ends, regulatory regions of many oncogenes c-kit, proto-oncogene c-myc, Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (KRas). Curcumin(diferuloylmethane), an antiinflammatory and antioxidant compound, is found in the rhizomes of the plant Curcuma longa. The phytopolyphenolic chemical curcumin has been in the prominence due to its diverse pharmacological activities. Here, we studied the binding of curcumin with G-quartet and duplex DNA as well as protein bound DNA. Curcumin showed inclination toward binding with G4 than C4 and duplex sequences. Furthermore, cellular studies have been initiated on HeyA8 ovarian cancer cells. Curcumin treatment inhibited the proliferation of HeyA8 cells in a dose responsive manner demonstrated by MTT assay. studies on the binding of curcumin with HeyA8 DNA are underway.