• Kang Pa Lee, Kwan Lee, Won-Hwan Park, Hyuck Kim, and Heeok Hong.
• 1 Department of Medical Science, School of Medicine, Konkuk University , Seoul, Korea.
• J Med Food. 2015 Feb 1; 18 (2): 208-15.

AbstractThe proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) in blood vessels are important in the pathogenesis of vascular disorders such as atherosclerosis and restenosis. Piperine, a major component of black pepper, has antioxidant, anticancer, and anti-inflammatory activity. However, the antiatherosclerotic effects of piperine have not been investigated. In this study, the effects of piperine on platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-BB-induced proliferation and migration of VSMCs were investigated. The antiproliferative effects of piperine were determined using MTT assays, cell counting, real-time polymerase chain reaction, and western blots. Our results showed that piperine significantly attenuated the proliferation of VSMCs by increasing the expression of p27(kip1), regulating the mRNA expression of cell cycle enzymes (cyclin D, cyclin E, and PCNA), and decreasing the phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)1/2 in a noncytotoxic concentration-dependent manner (30-100 μM). Moreover, we examined the effects of piperine on the migration of PDGF-BB-stimulated VSMCs, as determined by the Boyden chamber assay, H2DCFDA staining, and western blots. Our results showed that 100 μM piperine decreased cell migration, the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and phosphorylation of the p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK). Taken together, our results suggest that piperine inhibits PDGF-BB-induced proliferation and the migration of VSMCs by inducing cell cycle arrest and suppressing MAPK phosphorylation and ROS. These findings suggest that piperine may be beneficial for the treatment of vascular-related disorders and diseases.

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