Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common
cancers and preventive strategies based on natural compounds are highly desirable.
Curcumin, the principal bioactive compound in Curcuma longa, was described to have multiple beneficial health effects. A drawback, however, is the low bioavailability due to its insolubility in water. Here, we studied whether nanoscaled micellar
curcumin with improved bioavailability administered in
drinking water reduces
inflammation and CRC formation in a mouse model. C57BL6 wild-type (WT) mice and a strain defective in the
DNA repair enzyme O6-methylguanine-DNA
methyltransferase (MGMT) were used, in which
tumors were induced by
azoxymethane (AOM) followed by
dextran sodium sulfate (DSS).
Inflammation and
tumor formation were determined by mini-colonoscopy. Micellar
curcumin (mCur) administered in
drinking water significantly reduced AOM/DSS-induced colorectal
inflammation in both WT and MGMT-deficient mice as compared to animals receiving
drinking water with
micelles not containing
curcumin. In line with this, the
tumor yield and
tumor score were significantly lower in mCur-treated mice compared to the control group. No adverse effects were observed in animals receiving mCur daily for at least three months. Overall, our data show that chronic oral administered micellar
curcumin is well tolerated and reduces chemical-induced gut
inflammation and CRC formation in mice.Impact: The study shows that micellar
curcumin with high bioavailability chronically administered at low and physiologically relevant concentration suppresses
inflammation and
carcinogenesis in a mouse
colorectal tumor model.