Bioactivity Evaluation of a Novel Formulated Curcumin

Abstract

Curcumin has been used as a traditional medicine and/or functional food in several cultures because of its health benefits including anticancer properties. However, poor oral bioavailability of curcumin has limited its oral usage as a food supplement and medical food. Here we formulated curcumin pellets using a solid dispersion technique. The pellets had the advantages of reduced particle size, improved water solubility, and particle porosity. This pellet form led to an improvement in curcumin’s oral bioavailability. Additionally, we used the C-Map and Library of Integrated Network-Based Cellular Signatures (LINCS) Unified Environment (CLUE) gene expression database to determine the potential biological functions of formulated curcumin. The results indicated that, similar to conventional curcumin, the formulated curcumin acted as an NF-κB pathway inhibitor. Moreover, ConsensusPathDB database analysis was used to predict possible targets and it revealed that both forms of curcumin exhibit similar biological functions, including apoptosis. Biochemical characterization revealed that both the forms indeed induced apoptosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cell lines. We concluded that the formulated curcumin increases the oral bioavailability in animals, and, as expected, retains characteristics similar to conventional curcumin at the cellular level. Our screening platform using big data not only confirms that both the forms of curcumin have similar mechanisms but also predicts the novel mechanism of the formulated curcumin.

The Influence of Diet and Its Components on the Development and Prevention of Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC)

“…Curcumin, a component of the commonly used spice in Asian cuisine, turmeric, extracted from the rhizome of turmeric, exhibits anti-cancer effects in HCC. Apart from its anti-cancer properties, curcumin also offers anti-inflammatory characteristics [ 76 , 77 , 78 ]. Its pro-apoptotic effects on cancer cells have been demonstrated, along with its beneficial impact on glucose tolerance and anti-steatosis in the liver.…”

“…Its pro-apoptotic effects on cancer cells have been demonstrated, along with its beneficial impact on glucose tolerance and anti-steatosis in the liver. Scientists suggest its use as a functional food ingredient due to its inhibitory effects on the mitotic division of cancer cells [ 78 ].…”

A Review on the Antiviral Activity of Functional Foods Against COVID-19 and Viral Respiratory Tract Infections

“… 5 FFs have been applied for an extended time, supplying necessary for individual life and used as natural alternative medications to manage disease. 6 , 7 Different nations have recognized the significance of functional food, which is necessary for human survival and enhances functional processes and immune enhancements. 8 , 9 The application of FFs, including polyphenols, flavonoids, propolis, curcumin, prebiotic and probiotic, and also food supplements such as zinc (Zn), vitamin C, D, and E, has been increasing over the past few years for modulating immunity and to boost biological function.…”

Curcumin Formulations and Trials: What’s New in Neurological Diseases

“…Loading curcumin onto human serum albumin nanoparticles increased plasma and peripheral tissue levels following iv administration [ 35 ], an approach that took advantage of ex vivo findings showing that serum albumin is transported across endothelia [ 36 ]. Pellets of solid dispersion of curcumin using polyvinylpyrrolidone also increased plasma levels compared with conventional curcumin following oral administration [ 37 ], and other authors showed that optimised nanostructured lipid carriers were superior to solid lipid nanoparticles for increasing and preserving curcumin levels in brain (iv administration) [ 38 ]. Polymeric nanoparticles (NanoCurc) composed of N-isopropylacrylamide, vinylpyrrolidone and acrylic acid also resulted in measurable levels of curcumin in mouse brain (i.p.…”