Anticancer effect of curcumin on human B cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

To explore the anticancer effect of curcumin on human B cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and compare its effects on human B cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma cells and normal peripheral blood mononuclear cells (NPBMNCs). MTT assay was used to study the effect of curcumin on the growth of Raji cells and NPBMNCs. The effect of curcumin on the apoptosis of Raji cells and NPBMNC were studied by flow cytometry and TDT-mediated dUTP nick and labeling (TUNEL). The effect of curcumin on the cell cycle of Raji cells were examined by propidium iodide staining flow cytometry. The results showed that curcumin strongly inhibited proliferation of Raji cells, 24 h IC50 for Raji cells was 22.8 +/- 1.82 micromol/L and curcumin induced Raji cell apoptosis in a time- and dose-dependent manner. Raji cells treated with curcumin showed G0/G1 or G2/M phase increase and S phase decrease. However, curcumin did not demonstrate apparent proliferation inhibition and apoptosis induction in NPBMNCs. It was concluded that curcumin is able to inhibit the proliferation of Raji cells by regulating the cell cycle and inducing the cell apoptosis. Morever, curcumin has low toxicity on NPBMNCs but can selectively induce apoptosis in Raji cells.