A polymeric nanoparticle formulation of curcumin (NanoCurc™) ameliorates CCl4-induced hepatic injury and fibrosis through reduction of pro-inflammatory cytokines and stellate cell activation. Lab Invest 2011 Sep;91(9):1383-95
Date
06/22/2011Pubmed ID
21691262Pubmed Central ID
PMC3345948DOI
10.1038/labinvest.2011.86Scopus ID
2-s2.0-80052279738 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 104 CitationsAbstract
Plant-derived polyphenols such as curcumin hold promise as a therapeutic agent in the treatment of chronic liver diseases. However, its development is plagued by poor aqueous solubility resulting in poor bioavailability. To circumvent the suboptimal bioavailability of free curcumin, we have developed a polymeric nanoparticle formulation of curcumin (NanoCurc™) that overcomes this major pitfall of the free compound. In this study, we show that NanoCurc™ results in sustained intrahepatic curcumin levels that can be found in both hepatocytes and non-parenchymal cells. NanoCurc™ markedly inhibits carbon tetrachloride-induced liver injury, production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and fibrosis. It also enhances antioxidant levels in the liver and inhibits pro-fibrogenic transcripts associated with activated myofibroblasts. Finally, we show that NanoCurc™ directly induces stellate cell apoptosis in vitro. Our results suggest that NanoCurc™ might be an effective therapy for patients with chronic liver disease.
Author List
Bisht S, Khan MA, Bekhit M, Bai H, Cornish T, Mizuma M, Rudek MA, Zhao M, Maitra A, Ray B, Lahiri D, Maitra A, Anders RAAuthor
Toby Charles Cornish MD Professor in the Pathology department at Medical College of WisconsinMESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
AnimalsBiological Availability
Carbon Tetrachloride Poisoning
Cell Line, Transformed
Curcumin
Inflammation Mediators
Male
Mice
Mice, Inbred C57BL
Nanoparticles
Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
