Potent Anti-Cancer Properties of Phthalimide-Based Curcumin Derivatives on Prostate Tumor Cells

Belluti, Silvia; Orteca, Giulia; Semeghini, Valentina; Rigillo, Giovanna; Parenti, Francesca; Ferrari, Erika; Imbriano, Carol

doi:10.3390/ijms20010028

Open AccessArticle

Potent Anti-Cancer Properties of Phthalimide-Based Curcumin Derivatives on Prostate Tumor Cells

by

Silvia Belluti

¹

,

Giulia Orteca

²,

Valentina Semeghini

¹,

Giovanna Rigillo

¹

,

Francesca Parenti

²

,

Erika Ferrari

^2,*

and

Carol Imbriano

^1,*

¹

Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, via Campi 213/D, 41125 Modena, Italy

²

Department of Chemical and Geological Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy

^*

Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(1), 28; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20010028

Submission received: 31 October 2018 / Revised: 14 December 2018 / Accepted: 18 December 2018 / Published: 21 December 2018

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Effect of Dietary Factors on Cancer)

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Abstract

Metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer is commonly treated with chemotherapy, whose effect is less than satisfactory. This raised the need for novel agents for the treatment of prostate cancer. In the present study, five phthalimide-based curcumin derivatives were synthesized and completely characterized to assess improved stability, pharmacodynamics, and radical scavenging ability. To investigate the potential application in anti-cancer therapy, the anti-proliferative activity of the synthesized molecules was determined on aggressive prostate tumor cells. We demonstrated that the K3F21 derivative has increased potency compared to curcumin, in terms of GI50, anti-proliferative and anti-migrating activities. K3F21 inhibits anchorage-dependent and -independent growth of prostate cancer cells by altering the expression of key genes controlling cell proliferation, such as Cylins D1, B1 and B2, and apoptosis, among which Puma, Noxa, and Bcl-2 family members. Finally, the anti-cancer activity of K3F21 was demonstrated by the analysis of cancer-associated PI3K/AKT, ERK, and p38 signaling pathways.

Keywords: curcuminoids; prostate cancer; cell proliferation; anti-cancer drugs; phthalimide

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MDPI and ACS Style

Belluti, S.; Orteca, G.; Semeghini, V.; Rigillo, G.; Parenti, F.; Ferrari, E.; Imbriano, C. Potent Anti-Cancer Properties of Phthalimide-Based Curcumin Derivatives on Prostate Tumor Cells. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20, 28. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20010028

AMA Style

Belluti S, Orteca G, Semeghini V, Rigillo G, Parenti F, Ferrari E, Imbriano C. Potent Anti-Cancer Properties of Phthalimide-Based Curcumin Derivatives on Prostate Tumor Cells. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2019; 20(1):28. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20010028

Chicago/Turabian Style

Belluti, Silvia, Giulia Orteca, Valentina Semeghini, Giovanna Rigillo, Francesca Parenti, Erika Ferrari, and Carol Imbriano. 2019. "Potent Anti-Cancer Properties of Phthalimide-Based Curcumin Derivatives on Prostate Tumor Cells" International Journal of Molecular Sciences 20, no. 1: 28. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20010028

APA Style

Belluti, S., Orteca, G., Semeghini, V., Rigillo, G., Parenti, F., Ferrari, E., & Imbriano, C. (2019). Potent Anti-Cancer Properties of Phthalimide-Based Curcumin Derivatives on Prostate Tumor Cells. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 20(1), 28. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20010028

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Potent Anti-Cancer Properties of Phthalimide-Based Curcumin Derivatives on Prostate Tumor Cells

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