Colloidal submicron-particle curcumin exhibits high absorption efficiency-a double-blind, 3-way crossover study.

Curcumin is a major constituent of the spice turmeric and has various biological activities, including anticancer, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties, as well as alcohol detoxification. However, because of its poor absorption efficiency, it is difficult for orally administered curcumin to reach blood levels sufficient to exert its bioactivities. To overcome this problem, several curcumin preparations with a drug-delivery system (DDS) have been developed to increase the bioavailability of curcumin after oral administration, and tested as functional foods and potential medical agents in humans. We have also produced capsules containing Theracurmin, curcumin dispersed with colloidal submicron-particles. To evaluate the absorption efficiency of three types of DDS curcumin, we performed a double-blind, 3-way crossover study. We compared plasma curcumin levels after the administration of Theracurmin and 2 other capsule types of curcumin with DDS, BCM-95 (micronized curcumin with turmeric essential oils) and Meriva (curcumin-phospholipid). Nine healthy subjects (male/female=5/4, age: 24-32 y old) were administered these 3 preparations of DDS curcumin, at commonly used dosages. Six capsules of Theracurmin, 1 capsule of BCM-95, and 2 capsules of Meriva contain 182.4 ± 1.0, 279.3 ± 10.7, and 152.5 ± 20.3 mg of curcumin, respectively. The maximal plasma curcumin concentration (0-24 h) of Theracurmin was 10.7 to 5.6 times higher than those of BCM-95 and Meriva, respectively. Moreover, the area under the blood concentration-time curve at 0-24 h was found to be 11.0- and 4.6-fold higher with Theracurmin than BCM-95 and Meriva, respectively. These data indicate that Theracurmin exhibits a much higher absorption efficiency than other curcumin DDS preparations.

Drinkable preparation of Theracurmin exhibits high absorption efficiency--a single-dose, double-blind, 4-way crossover study.

Curcumin has various biological activities including antioxidant and antiinflammatory actions, and alcohol detoxification. However, because of its poor absorption efficiency, it is difficult for orally administered curcumin to reach blood levels sufficient to realize its bioactivities. We have generated capsules and tablets containing Theracurmin, a highly absorptive curcumin. In addition, we recently created a drinkable preparation of Theracurmin. To evaluate the absorption efficiency of this type of curcumin, we performed a single-dose, double-blind, 4-way crossover study. We compared plasma curcumin levels after the administration of Theracurmin beverage and 3 other drinkable types of curcumin sold in Japan. Twenty-four healthy subjects (male/female=13/11, age: 23-32) were administered with these 4 drinkable preparations of curcumin. The area under the blood concentration-time curve at 0-8 h was found to be 1.5 to 4.0-fold higher with Theracurmin than with the other 3 kinds of curcumin beverage. Moreover, maximal plasma curcumin concentrations (0-8 h) of Theracurmin were 1.8 to 3.8 times higher than those of the other 3 curcumin beverages. These data indicate that our newly prepared Theracurmin beverage exhibits a much better absorption efficiency than other kinds of curcumin beverage sold in Japan.