Curcumin's chemical structure and turmeric's uses
What it found
Curcumin, the main yellow part of turmeric, exists in the enol form rather than the 1,3-diketone form often shown.
Turmeric is still mainly used as a food, and may have pharmaceutical uses.
What they found
Curcumin's form
Curcumin is often shown as a 1,3-diketone in solid form and in non-water solutions, but it actually exists in the enol form.
Structure puzzle
Working out curcumin's chemical structure took nearly a century. It was made harder by the difficulty of purifying curcumin and by two other yellow components.
Turmeric's main use
Food remains the main use for turmeric. Its use as a dye has fallen since the 19th century.
Possible drug uses
Turmeric may have pharmaceutical uses, which the paper calls a new spice.
What the authors conclude
- They describe turmeric as an old spice with a new potential role.
- They note that food remains its main use, while its use as a dye has diminished since the 19th century.
- They suggest it may have pharmaceutical uses.
How it was done
The paper traces the history of chemical investigations into turmeric's yellow components back to 1815, and notes that identifying curcumin's structure took nearly a century.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- This paper is about chemistry and history, not about health effects in people.
- It does not report any tests of turmeric or curcumin in people or animals.
The paper
- Title
- Turmeric: old spice, new spice
- Type
- Study
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Cooksey CJ (2017). Turmeric: old spice, new spice. Biotechnic & histochemistry. doi:10.1080/10520295.2017.1310924PubMed 28506084DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error