Curcumin Nano-Capsules Boost Absorption for Treatment
Author: American Chemical Society
Published: 2009/11/04 - Updated: 2026/01/31
Publication Type: Research, Study, Analysis
Category Topic: Offbeat News - Related Publications
Page Content: Synopsis - Introduction - Main - Insights, Updates
Synopsis: This research, published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry by the American Chemical Society, presents a scientific breakthrough in enhancing the therapeutic potential of curcumin, the active antioxidant compound found in turmeric and curry spices. The study addresses a critical limitation that has hindered curcumin's medical applications: poor absorption in the digestive system. By encapsulating curcumin in liposome structures, researchers achieved more than a fourfold increase in bioavailability when tested in laboratory animals, while simultaneously elevating antioxidant levels in the bloodstream. This advancement holds particular significance for individuals managing conditions currently under clinical investigation, including colon cancer, psoriasis, and Alzheimer's disease - conditions that disproportionately affect older adults and people with chronic health challenges who often seek safer, more accessible treatment alternatives to conventional pharmaceuticals - Disabled World (DW).
- Definition: Curcumin
Curcumin is the primary bioactive compound found in turmeric, the golden-yellow spice that's been used in Indian cooking and traditional medicine for thousands of years. Chemically, it belongs to a group of compounds called curcuminoids, and it's what gives turmeric its distinctive color and most of its therapeutic properties. The compound has gained serious attention from researchers because it shows remarkable anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects in laboratory studies, though there's an important catch - our bodies are notoriously bad at absorbing it on its own. That's why you'll often see curcumin supplements combined with black pepper extract (piperine), which can dramatically improve absorption. While the scientific community remains cautiously optimistic about its potential benefits for conditions ranging from arthritis to depression, the clinical evidence is still developing, and curcumin hasn't achieved the miracle-cure status that some marketing would have you believe. Still, its safety profile is excellent, and there's enough promising research to justify continued investigation into how this ancient compound might fit into modern medicine.
Introduction
Scientists are reporting development of a nano-size capsule that boosts the body's uptake of curcumin, an ingredient in yellow curry now being evaluated in clinical trials for treatment of several diseases.
Their study is in ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, a bi-weekly publication.
Main Content
Koji Wada and colleagues note that curcumin is a potent antioxidant found in the spice, turmeric. Clinical trials are checking its safety and effectiveness for colon cancer, psoriasis, and Alzheimer's disease. However, digestive juice in the gastrointestinal tract quickly destroys curcumin so that little actually gets into the blood.
Scientists have known for years that encapsulating insulin and certain other drugs into structures called liposomes can boost absorption.
The scientists prepared the liposomes encapsulating curcumin and fed them to laboratory rats. Encapsulating more than quadrupled absorption of curcumin, and also boosted antioxidant levels in the blood.
The encapsulating process could be an answer to the problem of increasing curcumin's absorption in the digestive environment of the gastrointestinal tract, they suggest.