Cytotoxic effect of curcumin on viability and P21 and Bcl-2 genes expression of the human anaplastic thyroid Carcinoma cells line (SW-1736)

Background & Aim: Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC) is an uncommon malignancy of the thyroid .with poor prognosis and 2 to 6 month of survival time. The aim of this study was to explore the effect of curcumin on bioavailability and expression of p21 and Bcl-2 genes in human anaplastic thyroid carcinoma cell line (SW-1736). Methods: In this study, human anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (SW-1736) cell line were cultured in RPMI-1640 medium with 10% bovine serum. The cells were treated with different concentration (2.5, 5, 7.5, 10 μM) of curcumin and incubated for 24 and 48 hours. Bioavailability was analyzed by MTS kit. The expression of p21 and Bcl-2 genes were investigated after 24, 48 and 72 hours by Real Time- PCR analysis in treated anaplastic thyroid carcinoma cell line. Results: The results of the MTS assay indicate that the treatment with concentration of 7.5 mM of curcumin at both incubation times significantly reduced the bioavailability of the anaplastic thyroid cells compared to the control and other experimental groups. Furthermore, the P21 and Bcl-2 genes  expression were significantly changed in treatment with 2.5, 5, 7.5 and 10 μM concentrations of curcumin for 24, 48 and 72 hours, compared to control group. Conclusion: Curcumin has an inhibitory effect on the growth and proliferation of anaplastic thyroid cancer cells.