Curcumin suppresses cell proliferation through inhibition of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway in medulloblastoma

Recently, the survival rate of medulloblastoma patients has greatly improved; yet, patients undergoing current treatment regimes suffer from serious therapy-related side-effects. The aim of the present study was to investigate the anticancer effects of curcumin on medulloblastoma cells by testing its capacity to suppress proliferation and regulate the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway. In the present study, cell proliferation was determined by MTT assay. Cell cycle was observed by flow cytometry. The changes in the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway were analyzed by immunofluorescence, western blot analysis and RT-PCR. Curcumin treatment resulted in a dose- and time-dependent inhibition of proliferation in the medulloblastoma cell line. Curcumin treatment arrested the cell-cycle at the G(2)/M phase. Furthermore, curcumin treatment led to activation of GSK-3 beta, reduced expression of beta-catenin and its downstream target cyclin D1. The attenuation of the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway was due to the loss of nuclear P-catenin. In conclusion, curcumin can inhibit cell growth by suppressing the Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway, and it has the potential to be developed as a therapeutic agent for medulloblastoma.