9 replies to this topic

[NeverSayDie]

Round One:

Curcumin with Bioperine® (the old favorite)

VS.

Curcumin Phytosome (curcumin bound to phosphatidylcholine)

Note: the study below justs compares curcumin with phosphatidylcholine to "unformated curcumin." Thus, we have no head-to-head rumble to work with here. We'll have to decide the winner on our own.


Comparison of systemic availability of curcumin with that of curcumin formulated with phosphatidylcholine Authors: Marczylo, Timothy¹; Verschoyle, Richard; Cooke, Darren; Morazzoni, Paolo; Steward, William; Gescher, Andreas

Source: Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology, Volume 60, Number 2, July 2007 , pp. 171-177(7)

Publisher: Springer


Abstract:

Curcumin, a major constituent of the spice turmeric, suppresses expression of the enzyme cyclooxygenase 2 (Cox-2) and has cancer chemopreventive properties in rodents. It possesses poor systemic availability. We explored whether formulation with phosphatidylcholine increases the oral bioavailability or affects the metabolite profile of curcumin.Male Wistar rats received 340 mg/kg of either unformulated curcumin or curcumin formulated with phosphatidylcholine (Meriva) by oral gavage. Rats were killed at 15, 30, 60 and 120 min post administration. Plasma, intestinal mucosa and liver were analysed for the presence of curcumin and metabolites using HPLC with UV detection. Identity of curcumin and metabolites was verified by negative ion electrospray liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry.Curcumin, the accompanying curcuminoids desmethoxycurcumin and bisdesmethoxycurcumin, and the metabolites tetrahydrocurcumin, hexahydrocurcumin, curcumin glucuronide and curcumin sulfate were identified in plasma, intestinal mucosa and liver of rats which had received Meriva. Peak plasma levels and area under the plasma concentration time curve (AUC) values for parent curcumin after administration of Meriva were fivefold higher than the equivalent values seen after unformulated curcumin. Similarly, liver levels of curcumin were higher after administration of Meriva as compared to unformulated curcumin. In contrast, curcumin concentrations in the gastrointestinal mucosa after ingestion of Meriva were somewhat lower than those observed after administration of unformulated curcumin. Similar observations were made for curcumin metabolites as for parent compound.The results suggest that curcumin formulated with phosphatidylcholine furnishes higher systemic levels of parent agent than unformulated curcumin. Keywords: Curcumin; Phosphatidylcholine; Bioavailability; Rat; Cancer Chemoprevention; Metabolism

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1007/s00280-006-0355-x

Affiliations: 1: Email: thm3@le.ac.uk

http://www.springerlink.com/content/41064982264j3516/

Full study:
https://lra.le.ac.uk.....in FINAL2.pdf

[meat250]

F (Relative bioavailablility) with added bioperine is an astounding 2000%


cant copy and paste the whole graph here, this is just the jist of it, so you be the judge


study

[meat250]

curcumin has been shown to be enhanced by: heat, oil, and curcumin....even warm milk has been brought up!! who would have even thought...

Biocurcumax is giving us curcumin that is predissolved in 10-15% oil by weight. Isn’t that what I am doing by mixing curcumin with full fat yogurt: predissolving it before ingesting it? Could it be that those of us who predissolve in oil are already getting the benefit of the improved bioavailability that Biocurcumax wants to offer us? And why does the dissolution of curcumin in oil help the bioavailability? I believe it is because the way the body digests fat is that it the chunks go through the stomach and then it becomes emulsified when bile is added to the initial end of the small intestine. Then those small droplets of oil, containing molecules of dissolved curcumin, are small enough to pass through the vilii of the small intestine into the network of lymph ducts that parallel all the network of blood veins, into which other molecules enter through the vein pores in the walls of the vessels (but the fat droplets don’t). Fats are not digested much in the stomach or the small intestine, but enter the lymph system, along with the enzyme lipase, which breaks down the fat globules and converts the fats into glycerol and fatty acids, both of which are soluble in water. So when the lymph is dumped back into the blood vein system up near the thorax, the fat has been changed into water soluble components. Presumably, the curcumin that was dissolved in the fat globules (dissolved means that it then existed in molecular form, not crystalline form), now remains attached to the fatty acids molecules or exists as free curcumin molecules in the blood to be carried throughout the body to find their home on some ugly little cancer cell in the bone marrow, where it frightens that cancer cell into committing hara-kiri, or your favorite word APOPTOSIS. So my theory is the Biocurcumax improves bioavailability by dissolving part of the curcumin in the oil, making easier for part of it to get into the blood stream through the lymph system. But I want to dissolve ALL of the curcumin in oil so that All of it gets into the blood stream through the lymph system. Maybe we already are there and don’t know it because no one ever measured



great long blog post about this right here

[MoodyBlue]

I have used Bio Curcumin as well as curcumin with bioperine, even taking very high dosages and often. Never felt an iota in the difference in the way I felt. Then I found out about Meriva SR, and the fact that the curcumin is bound to phosphatidylcholine (PC) made perfect sense to me. The sustained release is an added nice feature but that becomes meaningless without the high absorbability being present. The fact that 40% of the cell membranes in our bodies are composed of PC makes it obvious that our intestinal walls would so easily and readily absorb it. As long as the molecular compound which is formed by binding something else to the PC molecule is not too large it would be a safe bet to presume that the compound molecule would be absorbed as efficiently as PC by itself (well, almost anyway). So, I bought some and tried it. Within 20 to 30 minutes after dosing the effect was so profound that it was obvious that it was very, very well absorbed (and I dosed without bioperine).

Now, it makes no sense at all to me that there is any other curcumin product on the market. No others are comparable when considering the actually physical feeling one gets in one's body quickly after dosing.

[pycnogenol]

Doctor's Best just released their version of Meriva Phytosome Curcumin

http://www.drbvitami...v...ties&id=144

Thorne Research also makes a Meriva product.

http://www.iherb.com...Caps/18125?at=0

Edited by pycnogenol, 12 March 2010 - 11:51 PM.

[malbecman]

Well, you could probably just make your own. phosphatidylcholine is the major component in lecithin which is cheap and easy to get. You just dissolve the lecithin and curcumin in a 1:1 or 2:1 ratio

Properties of phytosomes
- Phytosomes: A Short Review
Phytosomes results from the reaction of a stoichiometric amount of the phospholipid with the selected polyphenol (like simple flavonoids) in a nonpolar solvent(2). They are lipophillic substances with a definite melting point, freely soluble in nonpolar solvents (in which the hydrophilic moiety was not), and moderately soluble in fats. When treated with water, they assume a micellar shape, forming structures which resemble liposomes, but which exhibit fundamental differences. In liposomes, the active principle is dissolved in the medium of the cavity or in the layers of the membrane, whereas in the phospholipid-flavonoid compounds it is an integral part of the membrane. Molecules are anchored through chemical bonds to the polar head of the phospholipids, as can be demonstrated by specific spectroscopic techniques(5,6).

[ahk]

Within 20 to 30 minutes after dosing the effect was so profound that it was obvious that it was very, very well absorbed (and I dosed without bioperine).

Moodyblue, can you describe the effects you felt so the rest of us know what to look for?

[klodde]

You should try Turmeric Force by New chapter: http://www.iherb.com...apsules/75?at=1

It's dissolved in olive oil and probably have high bioavailability. Can't find any data to back it up, but since olive oil can't be patented it would be strange if there was any. Anyway, I feel totally relaxed after taking two of these, like I've taking a prescription drug. Two is probably one too many but it sure feels good! I've tried other formulations with no results whatsoever. Didn't try Meriva®.

I have used Bio Curcumin as well as curcumin with bioperine, even taking very high dosages and often. Never felt an iota in the difference in the way I felt. Then I found out about Meriva SR, and the fact that the curcumin is bound to phosphatidylcholine (PC) made perfect sense to me. The sustained release is an added nice feature but that becomes meaningless without the high absorbability being present. The fact that 40% of the cell membranes in our bodies are composed of PC makes it obvious that our intestinal walls would so easily and readily absorb it. As long as the molecular compound which is formed by binding something else to the PC molecule is not too large it would be a safe bet to presume that the compound molecule would be absorbed as efficiently as PC by itself (well, almost anyway). So, I bought some and tried it. Within 20 to 30 minutes after dosing the effect was so profound that it was obvious that it was very, very well absorbed (and I dosed without bioperine).

Now, it makes no sense at all to me that there is any other curcumin product on the market. No others are comparable when considering the actually physical feeling one gets in one's body quickly after dosing.

Edited by Semisvensk, 27 March 2010 - 07:00 PM.

[MoodyBlue]

Within 20 to 30 minutes after dosing the effect was so profound that it was obvious that it was very, very well absorbed (and I dosed without bioperine).

Moodyblue, can you describe the effects you felt so the rest of us know what to look for?

Well "ahk", I'm not very good at describing physical sensation unless I have something to which I can compare it. It is possible that most of the difference in feeling I was experiencing was due to curcumin's anti-infammatory effect. Yet, I imagine there must be more to it than that. I can't describe the particulars of the effects other than to second what "Semisvensk" has to say above in that it is very relaxing and as powerful as a prescription drug. I can only reinterate that apparently not much of the other types of curcumin were penetrating the intestinal wall, and a large amount of Meriva SR was. It's well worth the gamble to try it for yourself. With Thorne's Slow Release technology on top of the phytosome absorption enhancement you only need to dose 2 to 3 times per day. 3 times per day, 8 eight hours apart would give you around the clock plasma curcumin levels. By the way in Ray Kurzweil's and Terry Grossman's book "Fantastic Voyage", it states that the green tea extract ECGC has a synergistic anti-cancer effect with curcumin.

Edited by moodyblue, 27 March 2010 - 09:44 PM.

[outsider]

In my humble opinion you don't need to enhance the absorption of curcumin. Looks like marketing more than anything else. After finding some negative study of higher dose curcumin supplementation (to combat cataract if I recall) I changed my mind. Moderate dose were the best. As a rule you get pretty much everything from an herb at 3 to 6 gm doses but you still get nice effects from 500 mg.