Journal
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSIOLOGY-GASTROINTESTINAL AND LIVER PHYSIOLOGY
Volume 295, Issue 5, Pages G1079-G1091Publisher
AMER PHYSIOLOGICAL SOC
DOI: 10.1152/ajpgi.90365.2008
Keywords
inflammatory bowel disease; Crohn's disease; NF-kappa B
Categories
Funding
- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases [5R01DK067286, 5RO1DK53347, 5R01DK047700]
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Curcumin (diferulolylmethane) demonstrates profound anti-inflammatory effects in intestinal epithelial cells (IEC) and in immune cells in vitro and exhibits a protective role in rodent models of chemically induced colitis, with its presumed primary mechanism of action via inhibition of NF-kappa B. Although it has been demonstrated effective in reducing relapse rate in ulcerative colitis patients, curcumin's effectiveness in Crohn's disease (CD) or in Th-1/Th-17 mediated immune models of CD has not been evaluated. Therefore, we investigated the effects of dietary curcumin (0.1-1%) on the development of colitis, immune activation, and in vivo NF-kappa B activity in germ-free IL-10(-/-) or IL-10(-/-); NF-kappa B(EGFP) mice colonized with specific pathogen-free microflora. Proximal and distal colon morphology showed a mild protective effect of curcumin only at 0.1%. Colonic IFN-gamma and IL-12/23p40 mRNA expression followed similar pattern (similar to 50% inhibition at 0.1%). Secretion of IL-12/23p40 and IFN-gamma by colonic explants and mesenteric lymph node cells was elevated in IL-10(-/-) mice and was not decreased by dietary curcumin. Surprisingly, activation of NF-kappa B in IL-10(-/-) mice (phospho-NF-kappa Bp65) or in IL-10(-/-); NF-kappa B(EGFP) mice (whole organ or confocal imaging) was not noticeably inhibited by curcumin. Furthermore, we demonstrate that IL-10 and curcumin act synergistically to downregulate NF-kappa B activity in IEC and IL-12/23p40 production by splenocytes and dendritic cells. In conclusion, curcumin demonstrates limited effectiveness on Th-1 mediated colitis in IL-10(-/-) mice, with moderately improved colonic morphology, but with no significant effect on pathogenic T cell responses and in situ NF-kappa B activity. In vitro studies suggest that the protective effects of curcumin are IL-10 dependent.
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