Curcumin, a polyphenol extracted from the rhizome of turmeric (Curcuma longa L.), is considered the component responsible for the different biological activities
of turmeric. However, given the limited bioavailability of this molecule, different
formulations have been prepared. One of these is MERIVA®, wherein curcumin is present
in a complex with phosphatidylcholine. To the best of our knowledge, only one study
[1] evaluated the peripheral bioavailability of MERIVA®, and a lack of information
exists on its distribution within the brain. On these bases, the aim of our study
was to evaluate the bioavailability of curcumin in the rat frontal lobe and hippocampus
after a sub-chronic treatment with MERIVA®. Specifically, adult male rats received
MERIVA® by oral gavage (134 mg/kg/die as curcuminoids equivalent) for 5 days in comparison
with a single administration setting and the concentration of curcumin was assessed
in the brain tissues at several time points (30 min, 1h, 2h and 3h) by using liquid
chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). These analyses were paralleled
by the assessment of curcumin and its metabolite curcumin-glucuronide at plasma levels.
After repeated MERIVA® administration, curcumin reached the brain with a specific
temporal profile. In particular, in the frontal lobe it was already present after
30 min (9 pg/mg), peaked at 1h (20 pg/mg) and tended towards normalization after 3h
(2 pg/mg). Conversely, only very low levels of curcumin were found after acute administration.
These results support the use of curcumin in brain diseases and add important information
on the bioavailability of one of its formulations.
Keywords: MERIVA®, curcumin, CNS, bioavailability.
References:
[1] Marczylo Marczylo, TH, Verschoyle RD, Cooke DN, Morazzoni P, Steward WP, Gescher AJ. Comparison of systemic availability of curcumin with that of curcumin formulated
with phosphatidylcholine. Cancer Chemother Pharmacol 2007; 60: 171 – 177
