The inhibitory effect of Curcuma longa total extract on telomerase gene expression and activity in MCF-7 breast cancer cell line

Curcuma longa possesses anti-inflammatory effects and inhibits growth of cancer cells. Principle compound of Curcuma longa is curcumin which could interferes with biological pathways. Telomerase is a ribonucleoprotein complex which prevents telomeres from shortening during cell division. In the most cancers, including breast cancer, expression and activity of this enzyme increases to compensate for chromosomes shortening and could be an attractive target of cancer therapy. Therefore, we aimed to study inhibitory effect of curcuma longa total extract on MCF-7 breast cancer cell line for evaluation of its possible anti-telomerase effect in these cells. MCF-7 cells were cultured, IC50 of extract was determined by MTT assay test and then, cells were treated with serial dilutions of extract. Finally, we used TRAP assay to determine inhibition level of telomerase in treated and control cells. IC50 was determined as 0.057mg/ml. Percentage of relative telomerase activity (expression) (%RTA) was decreased with increasing of Curcuma longa n-hexane extract. Considering inhibitory effect of Curcuma longa total extract on telomerase in the breast cancer cells, it is possible to use it for developing novel breast cancer therapeutics in the future.