Inhibitory effect of combined treatment with curcumin and 5-FU on nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Objective To investigate the effects of combined treatment with curcumin and 5-FU on inhibition of proliferation and induction of apoptosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma CNE-2Z cells,and to explore the potential mechanisms. Methods Curcumin,5-FU and the combination of them were applied on nasopharyngeal carcinoma CNE-2Z cells for 72 h,cell growth conditions were assayed by MTT method,apoptosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells were tested by flow cytometry. Bcl-2,Bax,caspase-3,and NF-κB protein levels were detected by Western blot. Caspase family including caspase-3,caspase-7 and caspase-9 mRNA expression levels were tested by real time PCR. Results After application of two drugs in combination,the tumor cell apoptosis rate was significantly higher than that of the single drug group( P 0. 01). Expression levels of Bcl-2 protein in CNE-2Z cells and NF-κB protein in the nucleus and cytoplasm were all decreased in curcumin group,5-FU group and the drug combination group,while expression levels of Bax protein and cleaved caspase-3 were increased. The expression levels of caspase-3,caspase-7 and caspase-9 mRNA in the drug combination group were higher than that of the single drug group. Conclusion Curcumin and 5-FU can respectively inhibit nasopharyngeal carcinoma CNE-2Z cell growth by inducing apoptosis of cells.Drugs combination may inhibit the growth of nasopharyngeal carcinoma CNE-2Z cells by inhibiting the expression of Bcl-2 gene,enhancing the expression of Bax gene,and induce apoptosis by inhibiting NF-κB activity.