title: Degradation of Curcumin: From Mechanism to Biological Implications.
abstract: Curcumin is the main bioactive ingredient in turmeric extract and widely consumed as part of the spice mix curry or as a dietary supplement. Turmeric has a long history of therapeutic application in traditional Asian medicine. Biomedical studies conducted in the past two decades have identified a large number of cellular targets and effects of curcumin. In vitro curcumin rapidly degrades in an autoxidative transformation to diverse chemical species, the formation of which has only recently been appreciated. This paper discusses how the degradation and metabolism of curcumin, through products and their mechanism of formation, provide a basis for the interpretation of preclinical data and clinical studies. It is suggested that the previously unrecognized diversity of its degradation products could be an important factor in explaining the polypharmacology of curcumin.
authors: Department of Pharmacology and Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine , Nashville, Tennessee 37232, United States.
authors: Claus
authors: C
authors: Schneider
authors: Department of Pharmacology and Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine , Nashville, Tennessee 37232, United States.
authors: Odaine N
authors: ON
authors: Gordon
authors: Department of Pharmacology and Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine , Nashville, Tennessee 37232, United States.
authors: Rebecca L
authors: RL
authors: Edwards
authors: Department of Pharmacology and Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine , Nashville, Tennessee 37232, United States.
authors: Paula B
authors: PB
authors: Luis
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D030024:Curcuma / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D003474:Curcumin / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D015394:Molecular Structure; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D010936:Plant Extracts; D003474:Curcumin
keywords: Michael reaction; bioactivity; curcuminoids; metabolism; polyphenol; protein adduction; quinone methide; turmeric