Inhibition of tumor growth and vasculogenic mimicry by curcumin through down-regulation of the EphA2/PI3K/MMP pathway in a murine choroidal melanoma model

Cancer Biol Ther. 2011 Jan 15;11(2):229-35. doi: 10.4161/cbt.11.2.13842. Epub 2011 Jan 15.

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the underlying mechanism by which curcumin inhibits tumor growth and reduces vasculogenic mimicry (VM) in a murine choroidal melanoma model. Sixty mice were given subretinal injection with B16F10 cells and divided into a treatment and a control group. Curcumin was administered to the treatment group once a day at a dose of 100 mg/kg for 18 days starting at d3 (the day of inoculation is designated as d0); an equivalent volume of poloxamer-F68 was administered to the control group. Immunohistochemical and histochemical double staining were ued to detect the different blood supply patterns. The amounts of epithelial cell kinase (EphA2), phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K), and matrixmetalloproteinase-2 and -9 (MMP-2, MMP-9) proteins expressed in the tumor tissue were analyzed using immunohistochemical staining; mRNA levels were measured using real-time PCR analysis. Results indicate that the tumor volume is reduced (P=0.000) and that the numbers of VM (P=0.000), mosaic vessels (P=0.031), and endothelium-dependent vessels (P=0.000) are significantly decreased by curcumin (P=0.001). The expression levels of EphA2, PI3K, MMP-2, and -9 are also lower in the treatment group than in the control group (P=0.001); similarly, mRNA levels in the treatment group are lower than those in the control group (P=0.000). In conclusion, curcumin has the ability to inhibit the growth of engrafted melanoma VM channels through the regulation of vasculogenic factors that could be related to the down-regulation of the EphA2/PI3K/MMPs signaling pathway. Thus, curcumin has the potential of being a clinical inhibitor of VM of choroidal melanoma.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antineoplastic Agents / pharmacology*
  • Choroid Neoplasms / blood supply*
  • Choroid Neoplasms / pathology
  • Curcumin / pharmacology*
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Down-Regulation
  • Female
  • Matrix Metalloproteinase 2 / metabolism
  • Matrix Metalloproteinase 9 / metabolism
  • Melanoma, Experimental / blood supply*
  • Melanoma, Experimental / drug therapy*
  • Melanoma, Experimental / metabolism
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Neovascularization, Pathologic*
  • Periodic Acid-Schiff Reaction / methods
  • Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase / metabolism*
  • Platelet Endothelial Cell Adhesion Molecule-1 / metabolism
  • RNA, Messenger / metabolism
  • Random Allocation
  • Receptor, EphA2 / metabolism
  • Tumor Burden / drug effects

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents
  • Platelet Endothelial Cell Adhesion Molecule-1
  • RNA, Messenger
  • Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase
  • Receptor, EphA2
  • Matrix Metalloproteinase 2
  • Matrix Metalloproteinase 9
  • Curcumin