TY - JOUR
T1 - The Natural Product Curcumin as an Antibacterial Agent
T2 - Current Achievements and Problems
AU - Dai, Chongshan
AU - Lin, Jiahao
AU - Li, Hui
AU - Shen, Jianzhong
AU - Shen, Zhangqi
AU - Wang, Yang
AU - Velkov, Tony
N1 - Funding Information:
This study was supported by Guangdong Major Project of Basic and Applied Basic Research, No. 2020B0301030007. This study was also supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Award number 32102724).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
PY - 2022/3
Y1 - 2022/3
N2 - The rapid spread of antibiotic resistance and lack of effective drugs for treating infections caused by multi-drug resistant bacteria in animal and human medicine have forced us to find new antibacterial strategies. Natural products have served as powerful therapeutics against bacterial infection and are still an important source for the discovery of novel antibacterial drugs. Curcumin, an important constituent of turmeric, is considered safe for oral consumption to treat bacterial infections. Many studies showed that curcumin exhibited antibacterial activities against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. The antibacterial action of curcumin involves the disruption of the bacterial membrane, inhibition of the production of bacterial virulence factors and biofilm formation, and the induction of oxidative stress. These characteristics also contribute to explain how curcumin acts a broad-spectrum antibacterial adjuvant, which was evidenced by the markedly additive or synergistical effects with various types of conventional antibiotics or non-antibiotic compounds. In this review, we summarize the antibacterial properties, underlying molecular mechanism of curcumin, and discuss its combination use, nano-formulations, safety, and current challenges towards development as an antibacterial agent. We hope that this review provides valuable insight, stimulates broader discussions, and spurs further developments around this promising natural product.
AB - The rapid spread of antibiotic resistance and lack of effective drugs for treating infections caused by multi-drug resistant bacteria in animal and human medicine have forced us to find new antibacterial strategies. Natural products have served as powerful therapeutics against bacterial infection and are still an important source for the discovery of novel antibacterial drugs. Curcumin, an important constituent of turmeric, is considered safe for oral consumption to treat bacterial infections. Many studies showed that curcumin exhibited antibacterial activities against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. The antibacterial action of curcumin involves the disruption of the bacterial membrane, inhibition of the production of bacterial virulence factors and biofilm formation, and the induction of oxidative stress. These characteristics also contribute to explain how curcumin acts a broad-spectrum antibacterial adjuvant, which was evidenced by the markedly additive or synergistical effects with various types of conventional antibiotics or non-antibiotic compounds. In this review, we summarize the antibacterial properties, underlying molecular mechanism of curcumin, and discuss its combination use, nano-formulations, safety, and current challenges towards development as an antibacterial agent. We hope that this review provides valuable insight, stimulates broader discussions, and spurs further developments around this promising natural product.
KW - Antibacterial resistance
KW - Bacterial infection
KW - Curcumin
KW - Molecular mechanism
KW - Nano-formulations
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85125316338&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/antiox11030459
DO - 10.3390/antiox11030459
M3 - Review Article
C2 - 35326110
AN - SCOPUS:85125316338
SN - 2076-3921
VL - 11
JO - Antioxidants
JF - Antioxidants
IS - 3
M1 - 459
ER -
