Effect of curcumin on atherosclerosis in apoE/LDLR-double knockout mice

It is widely appreciated that inflammation and oxidant stress contribute to atherogenesis. Curcumin, a polyphenolic natural compound has been reported to possess anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant actions. We hypothesized that curcumin could inhibit the development of atherosclerosis in the apoE/LDLR-double knockout mice fed with Western diet (21% fat, 0.15% cholesterol w/w, without cholic acid). Curcumin (purity>or=98%), premixed with diet, was given for 4 months at a dose of 0.3 mg/ per day/ per mouse. In this model curcumin inhibited atherogenesis, measured both by "en face" method (25,15+/-2,9% vs. 19,2+/-0,6%, p<0,05) and "cross-section" method (565867+/-39764 microm2 vs. 299201+/-20373 microm2, p<0,05). Importantly, curcumin influenced neither the concentrations of cholesterol and triglycerides in blood nor animal body weight. To our knowledge, this is the first report that shows the anti-atherogenic effect of low dose of curcumin in fine model of atherosclerosis: gene-targeted apoE/LDLR-double knockout mice.