Curcumin / PPARγ Cancer Research Results

CUR, Curcumin: Click to Expand ⟱
Features:
Curcumin is the main active ingredient in Tumeric. Member of the ginger family.Curcumin is a polyphenol extracted from turmeric with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.
- Has iron-chelating, iron-chelating properties. Ferritin. But still known to increase Iron in Cancer cells.
- GSH depletion in cancer cells, exhaustion of the antioxidant defense system. But still raises GSH↑ in normal cells.
- Higher concentrations (5-10 μM) of curcumin induce autophagy and ROS production
- Inhibition of TrxR, shifting the enzyme from an antioxidant to a prooxidant
- Strong inhibitor of Glo-I, , causes depletion of cellular ATP and GSH
- Curcumin has been found to act as an activator of Nrf2, (maybe bad in cancer cells?), hence could be combined with Nrf2 knockdown
-may suppress CSC: suppresses self-renewal and pathways (Wnt/Notch/Hedgehog).
Clinical studies testing curcumin in cancer patients have used a range of dosages, often between 500 mg and 8 g per day; however, many studies note that doses on the lower end may not achieve sufficient plasma concentrations for a therapeutic anticancer effect in humans.
• Formulations designed to improve curcumin absorption (like curcumin combined with piperine, nanoparticle formulations, or liposomal curcumin) are often employed in clinical trials to enhance its bioavailability.

-Note half-life 6 hrs.
BioAv is poor, use piperine or other enhancers
Pathways:
- induce ROS production at high concentration. Lowers ROS at lower concentrations
curcumin can act as a pro-oxidant when blue light is applied
- ROS↑ related: MMP↓(ΔΨm), ER Stress↑, UPR↑, GRP78↑, Cyt‑c↑, Caspases↑, DNA damage↑, cl-PARP↑, HSP↓
- Lowers AntiOxidant defense in Cancer Cells: GSH↓ Catalase↓ HO1↓ GPx↓
but conversely is known as a NRF2↑ activator in cancer
- Raises AntiOxidant defense in Normal Cells: ROS↓, NRF2↑, SOD↑, GSH↑, Catalase↑,
- lowers Inflammation : NF-kB↓, COX2↓, p38↓, Pro-Inflammatory Cytokines : TNF-α↓, IL-6↓, IL-8↓
- inhibit Growth/Metastases : TumMeta↓, TumCG↓, EMT↓, MMPs↓, MMP2↓, MMP9↓, uPA↓, VEGF↓, NF-κB↓, CXCR4↓, SDF1↓, TGF-β↓, α-SMA↓, ERK↓
- reactivate genes thereby inhibiting cancer cell growth : HDAC↓, DNMT1↓, DNMT3A↓, EZH2↓, P53↑, HSP↓, Sp proteins↓,
- cause Cell cycle arrest : TumCCA↑, cyclin D1↓, CDK2↓, CDK4↓, CDK6↓,
- inhibits Migration/Invasion : TumCMig↓, TumCI↓, ERK↓, EMT↓, TOP1↓, TET1↓,
- inhibits glycolysis /Warburg Effect and ATP depletion : HIF-1α↓, PKM2↓, cMyc↓, GLUT1↓, LDHA↓, HK2↓, PFKs↓, PDKs↓, HK2↓, ECAR↓, OXPHOS↓, GRP78↑, GlucoseCon↓
- inhibits angiogenesis↓ : VEGF↓, HIF-1α↓, Notch↓, FGF↓, PDGF↓, EGFR↓, Integrins↓,
- inhibits Cancer Stem Cells : CSC↓, CK2↓, Hh↓, GLi1↓, CD133↓, CD24↓, β-catenin↓, n-myc↓, sox2↓, OCT4↓,
- Others: PI3K↓, AKT↓, JAK↓, STAT↓, Wnt↓, β-catenin↓, AMPK↓, ERK↓, JNK, TrxR**,
- Synergies: chemo-sensitization, chemoProtective, RadioSensitizer, RadioProtective, Others(review target notes), Neuroprotective, Cognitive, Renoprotection, Hepatoprotective, CardioProtective,

- Selectivity: Cancer Cells vs Normal Cells

Rank Pathway / Axis Cancer Cells Normal Cells Label Primary Interpretation Notes
1 NF-κB signaling ↓ NF-κB activation ↓ inflammatory NF-κB tone Driver Suppression of survival and inflammatory transcription NF-κB is a primary, repeatedly validated curcumin target explaining pleiotropic downstream effects
2 STAT3 signaling ↓ STAT3 phosphorylation / activity ↔ or mild suppression Driver Loss of pro-survival and proliferative signaling STAT3 inhibition contributes to growth arrest, apoptosis sensitization, and reduced cytokine signaling in tumors
3 Reactive oxygen species (ROS) ↑ ROS (dose- & context-dependent) ↓ ROS / buffered Conditional Driver Biphasic redox modulation Curcumin can act as a pro-oxidant in cancer cells with high basal stress while acting antioxidant in normal cells
4 Mitochondrial integrity / intrinsic apoptosis ↓ ΔΨm; ↑ caspase activation ↔ preserved Driver Execution of intrinsic apoptosis Mitochondrial dysfunction and caspase activation occur downstream of NF-κB/STAT3 and ROS effects
5 PI3K → AKT → mTOR axis ↓ AKT / ↓ mTOR ↔ or adaptive suppression Secondary Reduced growth and anabolic signaling AKT/mTOR inhibition contributes to growth suppression and autophagy induction in cancer cells
6 Autophagy ↑ autophagy (protective or pro-death) ↑ adaptive autophagy Secondary Stress adaptation vs cell death Autophagy may be cytoprotective or cooperate with apoptosis depending on context and dose
7 HIF-1α / VEGF hypoxia–angiogenesis axis ↓ HIF-1α; ↓ VEGF ↔ minimal effect Secondary Anti-angiogenic pressure Suppression of hypoxia-driven transcription limits angiogenesis and tumor adaptation
8 Cell cycle regulation ↑ G2/M or G1 arrest ↔ largely spared Phenotypic Cytostatic growth control Cell-cycle arrest reflects upstream signaling and epigenetic effects rather than direct CDK inhibition
9 Migration / invasion (EMT, MMP axis) ↓ migration & invasion Phenotypic Anti-metastatic phenotype Reduced EMT markers and protease activity limit invasive behavior
10 Epigenetic regulation (p300/CBP HAT activity) ↓ histone acetylation ↔ modest Secondary Transcriptional reprogramming Curcumin modulates chromatin via HAT inhibition rather than classic HDAC inhibition


PPARγ, Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPAR-γ or PPARG): Click to Expand ⟱
Source:
Type:
Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPAR-γ) is a type of nuclear receptor that plays a crucial role in regulating various biological processes, including glucose metabolism, lipid metabolism, and inflammation. It is primarily expressed in adipose tissue, but it is also found in other tissues, including the colon, breast, and prostate.
PPAR-γ has been shown to have both tumor-suppressive and tumor-promoting effects, depending on the type of cancer and the context. In some cancers, activation of PPAR-γ can inhibit cell proliferation and induce apoptosis, while in others, it may promote tumor growth.
PPARγ
– Plays a central role in adipogenesis, lipid storage, and insulin sensitivity.
– Widely expressed in adipose tissue, but also present in colon, breast, and immune cells.
– In addition to metabolic functions, PPARγ regulates cell differentiation, apoptosis, and has anti-inflammatory effects.
– Ligand binding (such as endogenous fatty acids or synthetic agonists like thiazolidinediones) alters transcriptional programs impacting cell cycle and survival.

– In many cases, PPARγ is expressed in tumor cells, and its activation has been linked to induction of differentiation and growth arrest.
– However, expression levels can differ based on tumor subtype, with some studies reporting elevated levels while others note reductions in aggressive tumors.
– Crosstalk with other signaling pathways (e.g., Wnt/β-catenin, MAPK) can alter PPARγ's net effect in cancer cells.


Scientific Papers found: Click to Expand⟱
3794- CUR,    Curcumin hybrid molecules for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease: Structure and pharmacological activities
- Review, AD, NA
*GSK‐3β↓, *CDK5↓, *p‑tau↓, *IronCh↑, *ROS↓, *HO-1↑, *SOD↑, *Catalase↑, *GSH↑, *TNF-α↓, *IL6↓, *IL12↓, *NRF2↑, *PPARγ↑, *IL4↑, *AChE↓, *Dose↝, *GutMicro↑,
13- CUR,    Role of curcumin in regulating p53 in breast cancer: an overview of the mechanism of action
- Review, BC, NA
P53↑, DR5↑, JNK↑, NRF2↑, PPARγ↑, HER2/EBBR2↓, IR↓, ER(estro)↓, Fas↑, PDGF↓, TGF-β↓, FGF↓, EGFR↓, JAK↓, PAK↓, MAPK↓, ATPase↓, COX2↓, MMPs↓, IL1↓, IL2↓, IL5↓, IL6↓, IL8↓, IL12↓, IL18↓, NF-kB↓, NOTCH1↓, STAT1↓, STAT4↓, STAT5↓, STAT3↓,
123- CUR,    Synthesis of novel 4-Boc-piperidone chalcones and evaluation of their cytotoxic activity against highly-metastatic cancer cells
- in-vitro, Colon, LoVo - in-vitro, Colon, COLO205 - in-vitro, Pca, PC3 - in-vitro, Pca, 22Rv1
NF-kB↓, ATF3↑, HO-1↑, Wnt↓, Akt↓, mTOR↓, PTEN↑, Apoptosis↑, TGF-β↓, PPARγ↑,

Showing Research Papers: 1 to 3 of 3

* indicates research on normal cells as opposed to diseased cells
Total Research Paper Matches: 3

Pathway results for Effect on Cancer / Diseased Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress

ATF3↑, 1,   HO-1↑, 1,   NRF2↑, 1,  

Core Metabolism/Glycolysis

IR↓, 1,   PPARγ↑, 2,  

Cell Death

Akt↓, 1,   Apoptosis↑, 1,   DR5↑, 1,   Fas↑, 1,   JNK↑, 1,   MAPK↓, 1,  

Kinase & Signal Transduction

HER2/EBBR2↓, 1,   PAK↓, 1,  

DNA Damage & Repair

P53↑, 1,  

Proliferation, Differentiation & Cell State

FGF↓, 1,   mTOR↓, 1,   NOTCH1↓, 1,   PTEN↑, 1,   STAT1↓, 1,   STAT3↓, 1,   STAT4↓, 1,   STAT5↓, 1,   Wnt↓, 1,  

Migration

ATPase↓, 1,   MMPs↓, 1,   PDGF↓, 1,   TGF-β↓, 2,  

Angiogenesis & Vasculature

EGFR↓, 1,  

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling

COX2↓, 1,   IL1↓, 1,   IL12↓, 1,   IL18↓, 1,   IL2↓, 1,   IL5↓, 1,   IL6↓, 1,   IL8↓, 1,   JAK↓, 1,   NF-kB↓, 2,  

Hormonal & Nuclear Receptors

ER(estro)↓, 1,  

Clinical Biomarkers

EGFR↓, 1,   HER2/EBBR2↓, 1,   IL6↓, 1,  
Total Targets: 42

Pathway results for Effect on Normal Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress

Catalase↑, 1,   GSH↑, 1,   HO-1↑, 1,   NRF2↑, 1,   ROS↓, 1,   SOD↑, 1,  

Metal & Cofactor Biology

IronCh↑, 1,  

Core Metabolism/Glycolysis

PPARγ↑, 1,  

Proliferation, Differentiation & Cell State

GSK‐3β↓, 1,  

Migration

CDK5↓, 1,  

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling

IL12↓, 1,   IL4↑, 1,   IL6↓, 1,   TNF-α↓, 1,  

Synaptic & Neurotransmission

AChE↓, 1,   p‑tau↓, 1,  

Drug Metabolism & Resistance

Dose↝, 1,  

Clinical Biomarkers

GutMicro↑, 1,   IL6↓, 1,  
Total Targets: 19

Scientific Paper Hit Count for: PPARγ, Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPAR-γ or PPARG)
3 Curcumin
Query results interpretion may depend on "conditions" listed in the research papers.
Such Conditions may include : 
  -low or high Dose
  -format for product, such as nano of lipid formations
  -different cell line effects
  -synergies with other products 
  -if effect was for normal or cancerous cells
Filter Conditions: Pro/AntiFlg:%  IllCat:%  CanType:%  Cells:%  prod#:65  Target#:259  State#:%  Dir#:2
wNotes=0 sortOrder:rid,rpid

 

Home Page