| Objective: This systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to collate the effects of curcumin on
MDA and antioxidant markers in individuals with diseased conditions. In this study the research question
was “does curcumin supplementation improves oxidative stress and antioxidant defense enzymes in human
subjects compared to a group without curcumin supplementation?
Methods: This research included randomized controlled trials published in English in any year, in which intervention
with curcumin was compared to either placebo, or standard of care or no intervention. Pubmed,
Embase, Cochrane Central, Scopus and Google Scholar were searched. Meta-analysis was performed using
RevMan (version 5.3), with standardized mean differences (SMD) and random-effects models.
Results: One hundred twenty-seven titles and abstracts were identified which 17 articles were included for
final analysis. The number of participants ranged from 22 to 160 across the included studies. The duration
of intervention, dose of curcumin and location of outcomes measurements varied across the studies. Curcumin
significantly reduced MDA [SMD −0.46 (95% CI: −0.68 to −0.25)] and increased superoxide dismutase
(SOD) [0.82 (0.27 to 1.38)], catalase [10.26 (0.92 to 19.61)], and glutathione peroxidase [8.90 (6.62
to 11.19)] when compared with control group. Subgroup analyses displayed that curcumin could significantly
reduce MDA levels with or without use of piperine, however it could increase SOD level in presence
of piperine.
Conclusions: These findings suggest that curcumin may be used as an adjunct therapy in individuals with
oxidative stress. The administration of piperine with curcumin may enhance the efficacy of curcumin on
antioxidant defense system. |