Curcumin Research

You have reached the page dedicated to the research of curcumin, a secondary plant metabolite and biophenol of interest to the Sturgeon Research Project. This page was created and is maintained by Stephanie Saey and Nadia Ayala.

Curcumin Research Initiative

Preparation of Curcuminoid Standards from Turmeric Plant

Curcumin is a secondary plant metabolite of the turmeric herb Curcuma longa. The term "curcumin" has been used to refer to the bioactive molecule, but in reality curcumin has three derivatives (I/II/III) of different molecular structures: curcumin (I), demethoxycurcumin (II), and bisdemethoxycurcumin (III). Together, the aforementioned compounds are known as curcuminoids. A review of literature suggests that curcuminoids have chemotherapeutic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory activity, among other uses to be discovered. However, difficulty arises when seeking to study these curcuminoids individually. Curcumin I is commercially available (10 mg for $150), while demethoxycurcumin (II) and bisdemethoxycurcumin (III) are not commercially available. Our current research project aims to isolate (methanol in soxhlet), purify (automated Flash/HPLC), and characterize (NMR) the curcuminoids for further investigation.

The Three Curcuminoids

Curcumin I (Main Curcuminoid, in picture below), demethoxycurcumin (curcumin II), and bisdemethoxycurcumin (curcumin III) are the three major curcuminoids present in turmeric and of interest to this study. Their respective chemical structures are depicted below:

Curcuminoid Analogs with Potent Activity (Article)

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Flash Chromatography Data

We used a 15.5mL C18 Column to run 1mL of our Curcumin extract. This column uses acetyl nitrile and water to run the liquid phase through the column. We ran a gradient for 25 min and got three distinct peaks which we then proceeded to run an HPLC method on.

Sourcing turmeric

In order to proceed with the proposed research project, we needed to purchase turmeric from a reliable, science-conscious company. We chose to order 1 lb of organic and 1 lb of non-organic turmeric from Starwest Botanicals here.

Overview of Proposed Methodology

Procedure is modeled after the following study: Kiuchi, F, Goyto, Y, Sugimoto, N, Akao, N, Kondo, K, Tsuda, Y. Nematocidal activity of turmeric: synergistic action of curcuminoids. Chem Pharm Bull (Tokyo) 1993;41:1640-3.

• Extract curcuminoids with MeOH under soxhlet extraction.
• Partition MeOH supernatant with ethyl acetate (AcOEt) and water for purification purposes.
• Fractionate AcOEt extract by silica gel column chromatography to yield AcOEt curcumin eluents.
• Fractionate AcOEt eluents by silica gel TLC using chloroform: acetone = 8:1 as the solvent system.
• Purify each eluent by removing organic solvent (?) and analyzing under HPLC.

Extracting Curcuminoids under Soxhlet Distillation

• Weigh out 150.00g of turmeric powder with an analytical balance.
• Measure out 300.00mL MeOH using a burette.
• Place above compound and solvent in stillpot of soxhlet apparatus.
• Carefully turn on heat source and water source.
• Run extraction for 6-7 hours.