The Effect of Curcumin, Capsaicin, Catechin, and Vitamin D3 on the Cytokine Concentrations in U937 Cells

Overview

About 125 million people in the U.S. are affected by inflammatory disorders; despite this, there are no viable cures for these conditions. Many researchers have turned away from natural products and focused on lab-made proteins to help with treatments. However, these treatments are very expensive and out of reach for a lot of patients. Many researchers have not looked into natural spices and different everyday vitamins that help with anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties, such as curcumin, capsaicin, catechin, and vitamin D3. These natural compounds are also very cost-effective. In this research, Human pro-monocyte cells are exposed to different concentrations of curcumin, capsaicin, catechin, and vitamin D3, and different combinations of all to see if there is a change in the cytokine production of the protein TNF-α. Additionally, one control group of cells that did not have these spices/vitamins in the growth media was tested, and the rest of the cells were exposed to different concentrations of each spice/vitamin with DMSO separately, and then in different combinations. The cells were incubated with the spices for 96hr, 72hr and 48 hrs, and then were later tested through an ELISA kit to see the different concentrations of the cytokine TNF-α in the cells. The ELISA showed significant data between the samples and the expression of TNF-a in each well. The natural compounds did have a decreasing effect on the expression of TNF-a in the cells.

Competition history

• CSEF 2026 Biochemistry/ Molecular Biology (Senior Division) · Entry S-04-41

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