TY  - JOUR
AU  - Yanti, 
AU  - Stephanie, 
AU  - Yuliani, 
AU  - Winarno, F.G. 
AU  - Suhartono, Maggy T. 
PY  - 2014
TI  - Inhibition of Interleukin-6 Expression by Curcumin in Rat Vascular Smooth Muscle Explants In Vitro
JF  - American Journal of Biochemistry and Biotechnology
VL  - 10
IS  - 4
DO  - 10.3844/ajbbsp.2014.260.266
UR  - https://thescipub.com/abstract/ajbbsp.2014.260.266
AB  - In atherosclerotic plaques, infectious agents from microbes may release Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and heat shock proteins that can stimulate the production of mediators, i.e., pro-inflammatory cytokines, by vascular endothelial cells and Smooth Muscle Cells (SMCs). The elevated level of Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is strongly associated with the development of atherosclerosis. Here, we investigated whether curcumin isolated from the rhizome of Curcuma longa affected the expression of IL-6 at protein and gene levels in rat smooth muscle cells treated with LPS in vitro by conducting ELISA and Reverse Transcriptase-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) assays. LPS at 2 µg mL-1 activated the expression of IL-6 protein and mRNA in SMCs. Curcumin (1-15 µM) caused the decreased levels of IL-6 protein and mRNA in the dose-dependent manner in LPS-induced SMCs, indicating its potential antiatherosclerotic effect for cardiovascular risk management. In addition, curcumin also partially blocked the activation of LPS-induced phosphorylation of MAP kinases, i.e., ERK1/2, p38 and JNK, in SMCs, suggesting it may inhibit IL-6 expression via attenuating MAP kinase signaling pathways in LPS-induced SMCs. These data may in part explain the molecular action of antiatherosclerotic effects of curcumin.