A Review on Golden Species of Zingiberaceae Family Genus Curcuma

Abstract

The genus Curcuma pertains to the Zingiberaceae family and consists of 70-80 species of perennial rhizomatous herbs. This genus originates in the Indo-Malayan region and it is broadly spread all over the world across tropical and subtropical areas. This study aims to provide more information about morphological features, biological activities, and phytochemicals of genus Curcuma for further advanced research. Because of its use in the medicinal and food industries, Curcuma is an extremely important economic genus. Curcuma species rhizomes are the source of a yellow dye and have traditionally been utilized as spices and food preservatives, as a garnishing agent, and also utilized for the treatment of various illnesses because of the chemical substances found in them. Furthermore, Because of the discovery of new bioactive substances with a broad range of bioactivities, including antioxidants, antivirals, antimicrobials and anti-inflammatory activities, interest in their medicinal properties has increased. Lack of information concerning morphological, phytochemicals, and biological activities is the biggest problem that the researcher encountered. This review recommended that collecting information concerning the Curcuma genus may be providing more opportunities for further advanced studies lead to avoid wasting time and use this information for further research on bioactive compounds which are beneficial in medicinal purposes.