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References

Prasad S, Aggarwal BB Chapter 13. Turmeric, the golden spice: from traditional medicine to modern medicine, 2nd edn. In: Benzie IFF, Wachtel-Galor S (eds). Boca Raton, FL, USA: CRC Press; 2011
Tung BT, Nham DT, Hai NT, Thu DK Chapter 10: Curcuma longa, the polyphenolic curcumin compound and pharmacological effects on liver. In: Watson RR, Preedy VR (eds). : Academic Press; 2019
Peng Y, Ao M, Dong B Anti-inflammatory effects of curcumin in the inflammatory diseases: status, limitations and countermeasures. Drug Des Devel Ther. 2021; 15:4503-4525 https://doi.org/10.2147/DDDT.S327378
Di Martino RM, Luppi B, Bisi A Recent progress on curcumin-based therapeutics: a patent review (2012–2016). Part I: curcumin. Expert Opin Ther Pat. 2017; 27:579-590 https://doi.org/10.1080/13543776.2017.1276566
Jurenka JS Anti-inflammatory properties of curcumin, a major constituent of Curcuma longa: a review of preclinical and clinical research. Altern Med Rev. 2009; 14:141-53
Lin CL, Lin JK Curcumin: a potential cancer chemopreventive agent through suppressing NF-κB signaling. J Cancer Mol. 2008; 4:11-16
Marchiani A, Rozzo C, Fadda A Curcumin and curcumin-like molecules: from spice to drugs. Curr Med Chem. 2014; 21:204-222 https://doi.org/10.2174/092986732102131206115810
Gorabi AM, Abbasifard M, Imani D Effect of curcumin on C-reactive protein as a biomarker of systemic inflammation: an updated meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Phytother Res. 2022; 36:85-97 https://doi.org/10.1002/ptr.7284
Al-Maweri SA, Alaizari N, Alharbi AA Efficacy of curcumin for recurrent aphthous stomatitis: a systematic review. J Dermatolog Treat. 2022; 33:1225-1230 https://doi.org/10.1080/09546634.2020.1819529
Gharibpour F, Fakheran O, Parvaneh A The clinical use of curcumin for the treatment of recurrent aphthous stomatitis: a systematic review of clinical trials. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2021; 1291:229-238 https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-56153-6_13
Kia SJ, Mansourian A, Basirat M New concentration of curcumin orabase in recurrent aphthous stomatitis: a randomized, controlled clinical trial. J Herb Med. 2020; 22 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hermed.2020.100336
Deshmukh RA, Bagewadi AS Comparison of effectiveness of curcumin with triamcinolone acetonide in the gel form in treatment of minor recurrent aphthous stomatitis: a randomized clinical trial. Int J Pharm Investig. 2014; 4:138-141 https://doi.org/10.4103/2230-973X.138346
Manifar S, Obwaller A, Gharehgozloo A Curcumin gel in the treatment of minor aphthous ulcer: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial. J Medicinal Plants. 2012; 11:40-45
Ara SA, Mudda JA, Lingappa A, Rao P Research on curcumin: a meta-analysis of potentially malignant disorders. J Cancer Res Ther. 2016; 12:175-181 https://doi.org/10.4103/0973-1482.171370
Azab NA, Gamal-AbdelNaser A Natural remedies versus topical steroids for the treatment of oral lichen planus: a systematic review. J Herb Med. 2020; 24 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hermed.2020.100394
Kia SJ, Shirazian S, Mansourian A Comparative efficacy of topical curcumin and triamcinolone for oral lichen planus: a randomized, controlled clinical trial. J Dent (Tehran). 2015; 12:789-796
Dharman S, Ravinthar K Role of curcumin in alleviating symptomatic oral lichen planus: a systematic review. J Clin Diagn Res. 2020; 14:(2) https://doi.org/10.7860/JCDR/2020/42808.13498
White CM, Chamberlin K, Eisenberg E Curcumin, a turmeric extract, for oral lichen planus: a systematic review. Oral Dis. 2019; 25:720-725 https://doi.org/10.1111/odi.13034
Lv KJ, Chen TC, Wang GH Clinical safety and efficacy of curcumin use for oral lichen planus: a systematic review. J Dermatolog Treat. 2019; 30:605-611 https://doi.org/10.1080/09546634.2018.1543849
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Guo JC, Xie H, Wu H, Tong TJ Efficacy of curcumin in the treatment of oral submucous fibrosis: a meta-analysis [Chinese]. Hua Xi Kou Qiang Yi Xue Za Zhi. 2021; 39:195-202 https://doi.org/10.7518/hxkq.2021.02.011
Rai A, Kumar N, Sharma S Turmeric in the management of oral submucous fibrosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Cancer Res Ther. 2021; 17:327-335 https://doi.org/10.4103/jcrt.JCRT_95_20
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Basak SK, Bera A, Yoon AJ A randomized, phase 1, placebo-controlled trial of APG-157 in oral cancer demonstrates systemic absorption and an inhibitory effect on cytokines and tumor-associated microbes. Cancer. 2020; 126:1668-1682 https://doi.org/10.1002/cncr.32644
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Curcumin and oral mucosal disease: a review of the literature

From Volume 52, Issue 3, March 2025 | Pages 206-210

Authors

Magdalena Chan

BDS (Hons), Community Dental Service, Swansea Bay University Health Board

Articles by Magdalena Chan

Danielle Brown

BDS (Hons), MJDF RCS (Eng), PGDip MedEd, Oral and Maxillofacial, Torbay Hospital, Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust

Articles by Danielle Brown

Sanford Grossman

BDS, MFDS RCPSG, PGCert MedEd, FHEA, MOralSurg RCSEd, Bristol Dental School, University of Bristol

Articles by Sanford Grossman

Email Sanford Grossman

Abstract

A naturally occurring plant of the ginger family, Curcuma longa (turmeric), has an established therapeutic role in tackling a wide variety of inflammatory conditions. In view of curcumin's long-standing history and continual growth in the UK herbal remedy market, a literature review was a carried out to assess its potential role in the management of oral mucosal disease. The administration of topical and oral curcumin has been shown to have positive effects, such as alleviating symptoms and reducing lesion sizes in recurrent aphthous stomatitis, potentially malignant conditions, oral mucositis and denture stomatitis. The application of topical curcumin has been found to reduce concentration of bacteroides species and inflammatory cytokine concentrations in oral cancer patients.

CPD/Clinical Relevance: Curcumin may be used as a therapeutic agent in managing potentially malignant conditions, mucositis and recurrent aphthous stomatitis.

Article

Curcuma longa (turmeric) is a plant of the ginger family (zingiberaceae), originating in the tropical regions of south-east India. Curcumin is the component that is responsible for turmeric's familiar, characteristic golden colour. It has been used extensively as a culinary spice and dye, as well as to treat a wide variety of medical issues in Ayurvedic and Chinese traditional medicine for thousands of years.1 In the UK herbal remedy market, turmeric is predominately used as an anti-inflammatory agent and is typically found as a dietary supplement.2

Curcumin, chemically known as 1,7-bis(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-1, 6-heptadiene-3, 5-dione, is the main bioactive component found in the thick underground stems (rhizomes) of Curcuma longa. It is the principal curcuminoid found in the rhizome, alongside three others, namely demethoxycurcumin, bisdemethoxycurcumin and cyclocurcumin.2,3

Curcumin is regarded as having a ‘privileged structure’, owing to its potential to modulate different signalling pathways in the pathological processes of various diseases.4 Curcumin can play a crucial role in inflammation-mediated pro-inflammatory molecular pathways by interrupting nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) signalling at multiple levels. Additionally, it exerts its anti-inflammatory properties by regulating inflammatory signalling pathways by downregulating the activity of cyclo-oxygenase-2 (COX-2) and lipo-oxygenase, and inhibiting the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and interleukins -1, -2, -6, -8, and -12.5,6

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