PMID- 12676044
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 20030613
LR  - 20240109
IS  - 1075-5535 (Print)
IS  - 1075-5535 (Linking)
VI  - 9
IP  - 1
DP  - 2003 Feb
TI  - Safety and anti-inflammatory activity of curcumin: a component of tumeric 
      (Curcuma longa).
PG  - 161-8
AB  - INTRODUCTION: Tumeric is a spice that comes from the root Curcuma longa, a member 
      of the ginger family, Zingaberaceae. In Ayurveda (Indian traditional medicine), 
      tumeric has been used for its medicinal properties for various indications and 
      through different routes of administration, including topically, orally, and by 
      inhalation. Curcuminoids are components of tumeric, which include mainly curcumin 
      (diferuloyl methane), demethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcmin. OBJECTIVES: The 
      goal of this systematic review of the literature was to summarize the literature 
      on the safety and anti-inflammatory activity of curcumin. METHODS: A search of 
      the computerized database MEDLINE (1966 to January 2002), a manual search of 
      bibliographies of papers identified through MEDLINE, and an Internet search using 
      multiple search engines for references on this topic was conducted. The PDR for 
      Herbal Medicines, and four textbooks on herbal medicine and their bibliographies 
      were also searched. RESULTS: A large number of studies on curcumin were 
      identified. These included studies on the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, 
      antiviral, and antifungal properties of curcuminoids. Studies on the toxicity and 
      anti-inflammatory properties of curcumin have included in vitro, animal, and 
      human studies. A phase 1 human trial with 25 subjects using up to 8000 mg of 
      curcumin per day for 3 months found no toxicity from curcumin. Five other human 
      trials using 1125-2500 mg of curcumin per day have also found it to be safe. 
      These human studies have found some evidence of anti-inflammatory activity of 
      curcumin. The laboratory studies have identified a number of different molecules 
      involved in inflammation that are inhibited by curcumin including phospholipase, 
      lipooxygenase, cyclooxygenase 2, leukotrienes, thromboxane, prostaglandins, 
      nitric oxide, collagenase, elastase, hyaluronidase, monocyte chemoattractant 
      protein-1 (MCP-1), interferon-inducible protein, tumor necrosis factor (TNF), and 
      interleukin-12 (IL-12). CONCLUSIONS: Curcumin has been demonstrated to be safe in 
      six human trials and has demonstrated anti-inflammatory activity. It may exert 
      its anti-inflammatory activity by inhibition of a number of different molecules 
      that play a role in inflammation.
FAU - Chainani-Wu, Nita
AU  - Chainani-Wu N
AD  - Department of Stomatology, University of California, San Francisco, CA 
      94143-0658, USA. nitacwu@itsa.ucsf.edu
LA  - eng
GR  - K-16 DE00386/DE/NIDCR NIH HHS/United States
GR  - T32 DE07204/DE/NIDCR NIH HHS/United States
PT  - Journal Article
PT  - Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.
PT  - Review
PT  - Systematic Review
PL  - United States
TA  - J Altern Complement Med
JT  - Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.)
JID - 9508124
RN  - 0 (Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal)
RN  - 0 (Antineoplastic Agents)
RN  - IT942ZTH98 (Curcumin)
SB  - IM
MH  - Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal/adverse effects/*pharmacology
MH  - Antineoplastic Agents/pharmacology
MH  - Curcumin/adverse effects/*pharmacology
MH  - *Homeopathy/methods
MH  - Humans
MH  - Phytotherapy
MH  - Plant Structures
RF  - 42
EDAT- 2003/04/05 05:00
MHDA- 2003/06/14 05:00
CRDT- 2003/04/05 05:00
PHST- 2003/04/05 05:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2003/06/14 05:00 [medline]
PHST- 2003/04/05 05:00 [entrez]
AID - 10.1089/107555303321223035 [doi]
PST - ppublish
SO  - J Altern Complement Med. 2003 Feb;9(1):161-8. doi: 10.1089/107555303321223035.