Curcumin is a natural polyphenol that is extracted from the rhizomes of the turmeric plant (Curcuma longa), a member of the ginger family. It has been used for centuries in traditional Indian and Chinese medicine for its medicinal properties, including anti‐inflammatory, antioxidant and antitumor effects. SVCT2 (Solute Carrier Family 23 Member 2, also known as SLC23A2) is a protein that plays a role in the transport of Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid) into cells. SVCT2 plays an important role in tumor progression and metastasis, however, the molecular mechanisms of curcumin on SVCT2 have not been studied to date. Curcumin treatment inhibited proliferation and migration of cancer cells in a dose dependent manner. We found that curcumin reduced the expression of SVCT2 in cancer cells with a wild type p53, but not in those with a mutant type of p53. SVCT2 downregulation also reduced the MMP2 activity. Taken together, our results indicate that curcumin inhibited human cancer cell growth and migration by regulating SVCT2 through a downregulating p53. These findings provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms of curcumin's anticancer effects and potential therapeutic strategies for the treatment of metastatic migration.

Betula platyphylla extract includes various materials which showed biological activity such as terpenoids. For this reason, Betula platyphylla extract has been used to alleviate inflammation. In this study, extract of Betula platyphylla was obtained and purified using several solvents and evaluated whether they showed effect on prevention of hair loss. Cell cytotoxicity assay was performed to investigate the effect of extracts on cell proliferation. Western blotting was performed to observe the changes in expression of several related growth factors such as β-catenin, VEGF, IGF1, and cyclin D. Also, 5-αreductase activity was measured. The ethyl acetate extract was divided into four partial extracts and named as H3-1, H3-2, H3-3, and H3-4. The H3-2 extract showed proliferation activity of human derma papilla cell and increased the protein expression of several related growth factors such as β-catenin, VEGF, IGF1, and cyclin D, comparable to the effect of Ethyl 3,4,5-Trimethoxy Benzoate (ETB)and Lupeol (LPO). Moreover, we found that the fraction H3 was shown to decrease 5-α-reductase activity while ETB and LPO had no significant effect on 5-α-reductase activity.Keywords 5-α-reductase activity • Betula platyphylla extract • Ethyl 3,4,5-trimethoxy benzoate • Hair growth • Human derma papilla cell • Lupeol