Curcumin ameliorates alveolar epithelial injury in a rat model of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the effects of curcumin on alveolar epithelial injury in a rat model of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and its potential mechanism.


METHODS
The rat COPD model was established by cigarette smoke exposure combined with intratracheal administration of lipopolysaccharide. Thirty-eight male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into four groups: control, COPD model, COPD with curcumin and COPD with solvent groups. Neutrophil and macrophage infiltration in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) was evaluated, and the levels of IL-6, IL-8 and TNF-α in BALF and serum were determined by ELISA. Histopathological examination and TUNEL staining were used to assess the alveolar epithelial injury. The protein expression of p66Shc and p-p66Shc in the lung tissues was determined by immunohistochemistry and western blot.


RESULTS
Curcumin significantly decreased the numbers of total cells, neutrophils and macrophages in BALF from COPD rats. In addition, the levels of IL-6, IL-8 and TNF-α in BALF and serum of COPD rats were significantly decreased after treatment with curcumin. Moreover, curcumin ameliorated emphysema and ultrastructural damage of alveolar epithelial cells in COPD rats. The apoptosis index of alveolar epithelial cells in the COPD with curcumin group was significantly lower than that in the COPD model group. Furthermore, the protein expression of p66Shc and p-p66Shc in alveolar epithelia was significantly decreased in the COPD with curcumin group compared with COPD model group.


CONCLUSIONS
Curcumin attenuates alveolar epithelial injury in COPD rats, which may be partially due to the down-regulation of p66Shc.
Department of Respiratory Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Ming
M
Zhang
Department of Respiratory Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Yingying
Y
Xie
Department of Cardiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Rui
R
Yan
Department of Respiratory Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Hu
H
Shan
Department of Respiratory Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Jingjing
J
Tang
Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Yan
Y
Cai
Department of Laboratory Examination, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Jiafeng
J
Yin
Laboratory of Electron Microscope, Health Science Center of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Mingxia
M
Chen
Department of Respiratory Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Jie
J
Zhang
Department of Respiratory Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Xia
X
Yang
Department of Respiratory Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Qiuhong
Q
Zhang
Department of Respiratory Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. Electronic address: 81276894@qq.com.
Yali
Y
Li
D002282:Adenocarcinoma, Bronchiolo-Alveolar / Q000188:drug therapy; D056809:Alveolar Epithelial Cells / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects; D003474:Curcumin / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016207:Cytokines / Q000032:analysis / Q000097:blood; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000187:drug effects; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D008297:Male; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D011897:Random Allocation; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D000071425:Src Homology 2 Domain-Containing, Transforming Protein 1 / Q000235:genetics; D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution
D016207:Cytokines; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; C528035:Shc1 protein, rat; D000071425:Src Homology 2 Domain-Containing, Transforming Protein 1; D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution; D003474:Curcumin
Adapter protein p66Shc; Alveolar epithelial cell; Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; Curcumin; Ultrastructure