Effect of curcumin on proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells

Su Chaojiang; Liu Liting; Xiong Zhiqian; Zhang Shuai; Chen Yan; Liu Zongyang; Jiang Yan

doi:10.3969/j.issn.1009-0126.2025.01.020

Abstract：Objective To investigate the impact and underlying mechanism of curcumin(Cur)on the aberrant proliferation and migration of VSMC.Methods VSMC was treated with Ang Ⅱ to establish a cell proliferation model.The experiment included blank control group,model group,and low-,medium-and high-dose Cur treatment groups(1.5,3.0 and 4.5 pmol/L,n=11).To explore the effect of Cur on the AMPK/mTOR signaling pathway,VSMC was also assigned into blank control,Ang Ⅱ(10-6 mol/L),Cur(3.0 μmol/L)and Ang Ⅱ+Cur groups(n=3).Western blotting was employed to detect the expression of VSMC differentiation markers(α-SMA),dedif-ferentiation marker(OPN),autophagy-related proteins(P62 and Beclin-1),and proteins involved in the AMPK/mTOR pathway(AMPK,p-AMPK,mTOR,p-mTOR,p70S6K,p-p70S6K).Results Exposure to Ang Ⅱ enhanced the proliferation and migration of VSMC when compared with the blank control group(155％vs 100％,66％vs 48％,P＜0.05).When compared with the model group,the proliferative rate was significantly lower in the medium-and high-dose Cur groups,and the migratory rate was obviously decreased in the three Cur groups(P＜0.05).The α-SMA expression was increased in the medium-and high-dose Cur groups,and that of OPN was decreased in the three Cur groups when compared with the model group(P＜0.05).Enhanced Be-clin-1 and p-AMPK/AMPK and down-regulated P62,p-mTOR/mTOR,and p-p70S6K/p70S6K were observed in the Ang Ⅱ and Cur groups than the blank control group(P＜0.05).The Cur Ang Ⅱ and Cur+AngⅡ groups had notably higher Beclin-1 and p-AMPK/AMPK but lower P62,p-mTOR/mTOR,and p-p70S6K/p70S6K than the Ang Ⅱ group(P＜0.05).Conclusion Cur in-hibits the proliferation and migration of VSMC induced by Ang Ⅱ,potentially through its activa-ting the AMPK/mTOR signaling pathway and enhancing autophagy in VSMC.