Curcumin, the yellow pigment derived from turmeric rhizomes, exhibits antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and anticancer properties. We have previously reported in a study that curcumin could induce differentiation in embryonal carcinoma cell (EC). EC cells are the primary constituents of teratocarcinoma tumors, and hence differentiating them to a non-proliferative cell type may be useful in anticancer therapies. Here, we conducted a detailed study using various molecular approaches to characterize this differentiation at the cellular and molecular levels. The cells were treated with 20 µM curcumin, which was the optimal concentration to produce the highest amount of differentiated cells. Changes in protein and RNA expression, membrane dynamics, and migration of these cells after treatment with curcumin were then studied in a time-dependent manner. The differentiated cells were morphologically distinct from the precursor cells, and gene expression profiles were altered in curcumin-treated cells. Curcumin promoted cell motility and cell adhesion. Curcumin also induced changes in membrane fluidity and the lateral mobility of lipids in the plasma membrane. The findings of this study suggest that curcumin might have therapeutic potential in differentiation therapy for the treatment of teratocarcinomas or germ cell tumors (GCTs) such as testicular and ovarian GCTs.
Ovarian germ cell tumours are very rare and affect mainly young girls and women. Due to this, the conservation of reproductive potential is of great concern. One of the most remarkable advances in oncology is in the treatment of malignant ovarian germ cell tumours. Two histological groups are distinguished: dygerminomas, equivalent to testicular seminomas, and non-dysgerminomatous tumours. We report a case of a 30-year-old nulliparous woman who presented with persistent per vaginal bleeding and was found to have a malignant mixed germ cell tumour comprising of both embryonal carcinoma and choriocarcinoma.