Tohuku J. Exp. Med., 2002, 197 (4)

Curcumin's Effects on Sialic Acid Level and Sialidase Activity in
Ehrlich Ascites Tumor Bearing Mice

NAILE OZEN, EZEL USLU,¹ METEHAN OZEN,² SEVAL AYDIN,¹ TUNCAY ALTUG,³
AHMET BELCE¹ and EMINE KOKOGLU¹

Biochemistry Laboratory, Malatya State Hospital, Malatya,
¹Department of Biochemistry, Cerrahpasa Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Istanbul,
²Department of Pediatrics, Turgut Ozal Research Center, Medical Faculty of Inonu University, Malatya, and
³Experimental Animal Breeding and Research Laboratory, Cerrahpasa Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey

In this study, we determined curcumin's anticancer and chemopreventive effects in mice bearing Ehrlich ascites tumor by evaluation of cancer biomarkers, sialic acid level and sialidase activity. Both plasma sialic acid level and sialidase activity increased significantly in the mice group with Ehrlich ascites tumor. When the tumor groups fed with curcumin and fed with sesame oil were compared, sialic acid level and sialidase activity in ascites fluid significantly reduced in the group fed with curcumin in addition to the increases of plasma sialic acid level and sialidase activity. The tumor group fed with curcumin lived twice longer than the one fed with sesame oil. Curcumin as a phenolic compound decreased all these parameters in Ehrlich ascites tumors and lengthened survival by 88% in the mice with tumor. We concluded that curcumin has anticancer activity.

Keywords —— Curcumin; sialic acid; sialidase; Ehrlich ascites tumor

© 2002 Tohoku University Medical Press

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Tohoku J. Exp. Med., 2002, 197, 221-227

Address for reprints: Ezel Uslu, Istanbul University, Cerrahpasa Medical Faculty, Department of Biochemistry, 34303, Istanbul, Turkey.

e-mail: ezeluslu@hotmail.com