Attenuation of high-glucose-induced inflammatory response by a novel curcumin derivative B06 contributes to its protection from diabetic pathogenic changes in rat kidney and heart

There is increasing evidence indicating that inflammatory processes are involved in the development and progression of diabetic complications. However, effective anti-inflammatory treatments for patients who have diabetic complications have yet been practically identified. Curcumin is a main component of Curcuma longa with numerous pharmacological activities. Previously, we synthesized a novel curcumin analogue (B06) that exhibited an improved pharmacokinetic and enhanced anti-inflammatory activity compared to curcumin. The present study aimed to test the hypothesis that B06 may reduce high-glucose-induced inflammation and inflammation-mediated diabetic complications. In vitro, pretreatment with B06 at a concentration of 5 μM significantly reduced the high-glucose-induced overexpression of inflammatory cytokines in macrophages. This anti-inflammatory activity of B06 is associated with its inhibition of c-Jun N-terminal kinase/nuclear factor κB activation. In vivo, despite that B06 administration at 0.2 mg·kg− 1·d− 1 for 6 weeks did not affect the blood glucose profile of diabetic rats, the B06-treated animals displayed significant decreases in inflammatory mediators in the serum, kidney, and heart and renal macrophage infiltration. This was accompanied with an attenuation of diabetes-induced structural and functional abnormalities in the kidney and heart. Taken together, these data suggest that the novel derivative B06 might be a potential therapeutic agent for diabetic complications via an anti-inflammatory mechanism and support the potential application in diabetic complication therapy via anti-inflammatory strategy.