Curcumin, a polyphenolic yellow pigment found in turmeric, is commonly used as a
coloring agent in foods, drugs, and
cosmetics. In our previous study, we found that low levels of
curcumin did not increase the
reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation and caused no damage to
DNA in human
hepatoma G2 (HepG2) cells, but at high doses,
curcumin imposed oxidative stress and damaged
DNA. In the present study, we are determined to investigate the genotoxic and antigenotoxic effects of
curcumin using HepG2 cell line, a relevant in vitro model to detect the cytoprotective, antigenotoxic, and cogenotoxic agents. The results of micronucleus (MN) assays showed that, on one hand,
curcumin at the high tested concentrations (8 and 16 microg/ml) displayed a small but significant increase in the frequency of MN, and on the other hand, it was observed that the low tested concentration (2 microg/ml) significantly reduced the MN formation induced by the chemotherapeutic agent
cyclophosphamide. The present results indicate that
curcumin shows both genotoxicity and antigenotoxicity depending on its concentration.