Turmeric : The Spice that can overcome Drug-Resistant TB
Coinciding with World TB Day, a new research paper from the University of Colorado, Denver, indicates that curcumin, which is a substance found in turmeric, may help fight drug-resistant tuberculosis. Turmeric is commonly used in Indian food and is considered to have anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and even anticancer properties.
The university’s research team found that by stimulating human immune cells called macrophages, curcumin was able to successfully remove Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which causes TB, from experimentally infected cells in culture.
“The process relied on inhibiting the activation of a cellular molecule called nuclear factor-kappa B,’‘ said a press release put out by the university.
“The ability of curcumin to modulate the immune response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis points to a potential new tuberculosis treatment that would be less prone to the development of drug resistance,” it said.
“Our study has provided basic evidence that curcumin protects against Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in human cells,” said lead author Dr Xiyuan Bai about his study. However, he added, “The protective role of curcumin to fight drug-resistant tuberculosis still needs confirmation, but if validated, curcumin may become a novel treatment to modulate the host immune response to overcome drug-resistant tuberculosis.”
