Curcumin and Curcuminoids: Biological Activities and Clinical Studies

Curcuma longa L. (turmeric) is an herbaceous perennial plant belonging to the Zingiberaceae (ginger) family. A lipophilic substance called "curcumin", a spice widely used in different cuisines, is extracted from the rhizome of this plant through drying and milling. This spice confers a flavor and the typical yellow-orange color to food, and has always attracted the attention of the scientific community due to the presence of polyphenols with remarkable biological activities, including curcuminoids, which consist of curcumin, demethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcumin. Curcumin and curcuminoids exhibit different biological activities in vitro; however, their effectiveness in vivo is limited. Consequently, numerous formulations have been developed to enhance bioavailability and demonstrate promising effects for the treatment of various illnesses.

For this narrative review, the PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar databases were searched using the following key terms in titles and abstracts: nanocurcumin, curcumin nanoparticle, curcumin nanoformulations, intervention studies, controlled trials, randomized controlled trials, and clinical trials.

This review describes the effects of curcumin and its derivatives as antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant molecules, and their involvement in cancer, with a focus on epigenetic, chronic degenerative, and autoimmune diseases. Moreover, clinical trials using certain curcumin-based nanoformulations have also been reported.

The important biological effects of curcumin and curcuminoids, together with their nanoformulations, are discussed in this review.

All the beneficial properties of curcumin may complement conventional drug therapies and enhance their effectiveness in disorders associated with chronic inflammation and oxidative stress.