A group of researchers from the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) Guwahati in India have conducted a study to analyze the purity of turmeric, a popular spice used in Southeast Asian cuisine and the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industry.
Turmeric contains compounds called curcuminoids, which have various health benefits including anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, cardioprotective, and neuroprotective properties. Due to the demand for pure curcuminoids, which are found in turmeric, India is one of the largest exporters of turmeric in the world.
The researchers focused on a variety of turmeric called lakadong turmeric, known for its high concentration of curcuminoids. To analyze and characterize these compounds, the researchers used several analytical methods including ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1HNMR), carbon-13 nuclear magnetic resonance (13CNMR), high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS), and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS).
Using the hot percolation method, the researchers extracted and analyzed the curcuminoids in lakadong turmeric. They found that curcumin, desmethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcumin in the spice had a purity level of more than 99.5% using high performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector (HPLC-DAD), an analytical technique commonly used in quality control.
The researchers highlighted the commercial potential of these highly pure curcuminoids as active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) or reference molecules in industries such as pharmaceutical and agro-based industries. The market for curcumin was valued at $58.2 million in 2020 and is projected to grow exponentially due to increased demand for curcumin as a treatment for viral infections, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This study provides important insights into the purity of curcuminoids in turmeric and highlights the potential for further research and industrial applications of these compounds.
Source:
– Vardhini, N. M.; Punia, J.; Jat, S.; Pawar, S. D.; Devi, N.; Radhakrishnanand, P.; Murty, U. S.; Saini, A.; Sethi, K. K.; Kumar, P. Purification and Characterization of Pure Curcumin, Desmethoxycurcumin, and Bisdemethoxycurcumin from North-East India Lakadong Turmeric (Curcuma Longa). Journal of Chromatography A 2023, 1708, 464358. DOI:10.1016/j.chroma.2023.464358.
