ING4 expression in human gliomas and therapeutic role of curcumin on gliomas

Objective To elucidate the inhibitory effects and potential mechanisms of curcumin on glioma cells.Methods U251 cells were treated by curcumin with various concentrations. Cell proliferation was measured by MTT assay. The distribution of cell-cycle phases was determined by using fluorescence activated cell sorter (FACS) analysis. After treating with 10 μM curcumin for 24 h, DNA fragment was electrophoresed on 1% agarose gel. Cells treated with or without curcumin were measured by western blot analysis.Results Curcumin significantly inhibited the growth of U251 cells in vitro in a dose-dependent manner. FACS analysis showed that the low dose of curcumin induced significant G2/M arrest and the high dose of curcumin induced significant S phase arrest. Conclusion Curcumin exerts potent inhibitory effects on growth and proliferation of glioma cells presumably through up-regulating ING4 expression.