Curcumin

BACKGROUND & AIMS: The phytochemical compound curcumin was reported to be effective in maintaining remission in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). We investigated curcumin's efficacy in inducing remission in patients with active mild-to-moderate UC. METHODS: We performed a multicenter randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study of 50 mesalamine-treated patients with active mild-to-moderate UC (defined by the Simple Clinical Colitis Activity Index [SCCAI]) who did not respond to an additional 2 weeks of the maximum dose of mesalamine oral and topical therapy...

BACKGROUND: Curcumin, the principal curcuminoid derived from the spice turmeric, influences several biological mechanisms associated with major depression, namely those associated with monoaminergic activity, immune-inflammatory and oxidative and nitrosative stress pathways, hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity and neuroprogression. We hypothesised that curcumin would be effective for the treatment of depressive symptoms in individuals with major depressive disorder. METHODS: In a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, 56 individuals with major depressive disorder were treated with curcumin (500 mg twice daily) or placebo for 8 weeks...

Amyloid β (Aβ) aggregates are considered as possible targets for therapy and/or diagnosis of Alzheimer disease (AD). It has been previously shown that curcumin targets Aβ plaques and interferes with their formation, suggesting a potential role for prevention or treatment of AD. Herein, a click chemistry method was used to generate nanoliposomes decorated with a curcumin derivative, designed to maintain the planar structure required for interaction with Aβ, as directly confirmed by Surface Plasmon Resonance experiments...

Diabetic nephropathy is characterized by a plethora of signaling abnormalities. Recent trials have suggested that intensive glucose-lowering treatment leads to hypoglycemic events, which can be dangerous. Curcumin is the active ingredient of turmeric, which has been widely used in many countries for centuries to treat numerous diseases. The preventive and therapeutic properties of curcumin are associated with its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Here, we highlight the renoprotective role of curcumin in diabetes mellitus (DM) with an emphasis on the molecular basis of this effect...

OBJECTIVE: To assess the efficacy of curcumin in delaying development of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in the prediabetic population. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: This randomized, double-blinded, placebo- controlled trial included subjects (n = 240) with criteria of prediabetes. All subjects were randomly assigned to receive either curcumin or placebo capsules for 9 months. To assess the T2DM progression after curcumin treatments and to determine the number of subjects progressing to T2DM, changes in β-cell functions (homeostasis model assessment [HOMA]-β, C-peptide, and proinsulin/insulin), insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), anti-inflammatory cytokine (adiponectin), and other parameters were monitored at the baseline and at 3-, 6-, and 9-month visits during the course of intervention...

OBJECTIVE: Curcumin is a naturally occurring polyphenol present in the roots of the Curcuma longa plant (turmeric), which possesses antioxidant, antitumorigenic, and antiinflammatory properties. Here, we test whether curcumin treatment reduces high glucose-induced neural tube defects (NTDs), and if this occurs via blocking cellular stress and caspase activation. STUDY DESIGN: Embryonic day 8.5 mouse embryos were collected for use in whole-embryo culture under normal (100 mg/dL) or high (300 mg/dL) glucose conditions, with or without curcumin treatment...

In the present study, the anti-atherosclerotic effect and the underlying mechanism of curcuma oil (C. oil), a lipophilic fraction from turmeric (Curcuma longa L.), was evaluated in a hamster model of accelerated atherosclerosis and in THP-1 macrophages. Male golden Syrian hamsters were subjected to partial carotid ligation (PCL) or FeCl3-induced arterial oxidative injury (Ox-injury) after 1 week of treatment with a high-cholesterol (HC) diet or HC diet plus C. oil (100 and 300 mg/kg, orally). Hamsters fed with the HC diet were analysed at 1, 3 and 5 weeks following carotid injury...

The mechanisms of beneficial preventive and therapeutic effects achieved by traditional and complementary medicine are currently being deciphered in molecular medicine. Curcumin, a yellow-colored polyphenol derived from the rhizome of turmeric (Curcuma longa), influences a wide variety of cellular processes through the reshaping of many molecular targets. One of them, nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB), represents a strong mediator of inflammation and, in a majority of systems, supports the pro-proliferative features of cancer cells...