Effect of curcumin on the expression of NF-κB and IκBαin pulmonary fibrosis rats

objective To investigate the effect of curcumin on the expression of NF-κB and IκBα:in pulmonary fibrosis rats induced by bleomycin.Methods 144 male Sprague Dawley rats were randomly divided into 6 groups(24 rats in each group):Sham operation group,model group,prednisone acetate group,high curcumin dose group,moderate curcumin dose group,and low curcumin dose group.Bleomycin hydrochlorides were dropped into trachea in all groups except sham operation group,and same amount of saline were dropped into trachea in the sham operation group.Drugs were administered from the first day to the last day before the animals were killed.On 7d, 14d,28d,eight rats per group were randomly killed,the lung tissues were obtained to assess with immunohistochemical and Western blot method combined image analysis technique to detect NF-κB and IκBα:expression level.Results Compared with the sham group,the content of NF-κB P65 of the model group(7d,14d,28d) were significantly higher(P0.01 ) whereas the content of IκBα:were significantly lower(P0.01 );Compared with the model group,prednisone acetate group and curcumin(high,moderate,low dose) groups can reduce content of the NF-κB p65 in lung tissue,and increase the content of IκBα.Conclusion Curcumin can promote IκBαexpression and suppress NF-κB activation and expression in lung tissue.