THE BENEFITS OF CURCUMIN IN VARIOUS DISEASES AND THE EXTENSION OF ITS APPLICATION THROUGH VARIOUS TECHNOLOGICAL APPROACHES

Abstract

Turmeric is a plant that is widely used as a spice, and is also imposed in Ayurveda and Chinese medicin as a healing remedy.Indian traditional medicine has successfully established the use of turmeric for wound healing, rheumatic disorders, gastrointestinal symptoms, deworming, rhinitis and as a cosmetic. Turmeric (Curcuma Longa L.) is a perennial, herbaceous plant belonging to the family of Ginger ( Zingiberaceae). The usable part is the rhizome, which is cylindrical, often branched, on the outside is brown, inside is intense yellow with bitter taste and strong aroma.In the review, we present contemporary studies exploring the nature of turmeric. Due to its polyphenolic chemical structure curcumin has an anti-inflammatory, cholecinetic and antioxidant effect. These characteristics determine the use of curcumin for various diseases - diabetes, arthritis, Alzheimer's, asthma and heart failure, psoriasis, dermatitis, cancers, ophthalmic diseases, uroinfections, acne, vitiligo, etc. A limiting factor for the widespread use of curcumin in medicine is its physico-chemical instability, extremely low water solubility, poor bioavailability, rapid metabolism, which make it difficult to use it as a therapeutic agent. That is why in the present review we also present various technological approaches, such as: complexation with cyclodextrin; the use of adjuvants such as piperine that prevents glucuronidation and the rapid elimination of curcumin; use of liposomal curcumin; use of curcumin structural analogs; application of curcumin in complexes with phospholipids; use of nanoparticles; inclusion in emulsions. These methods aim at increasing the solubility, optimizing the absorption and the bioavailability of curcumin, leading to the expansion of the turmeric application areas and offering additional opportunities for targeted therapy or prophylaxis of specific diseases.In order to prevent various diseases in the future, it is necessary to increase the use of curcumin as an active agent both in the diet and in the form of concentrated sources such as tablets, capsules and other dosage forms.