Effects of turmeric on blood and liver lipoperoxide levels of mice: Lack of toxicity

We have investigated the effects on blood and liver lipoperoxide levels of turmeric, a potent antioxidant (from the rhizome of Curcuma Longa) which is extensively used as a food additive in India and other Asiatic and Central American countries, This study was performed on female Swiss mice that were 17 +/- 2 week old at the start of the experiment, A control group of 20 mice was fed the standard diet and another 20 animals received in their food 4 mg/Kg mouse/day of hydroalcoholic extract of turmeric, equivalent to 0.4 mg/Kg mouse/day of the phenolic antioxidant curcumin, This concentration is similar to that used in our current testing of turmeric on human subjects, The effects of the treatment were determined weekly by measuring food intake, body weight and muscular and CNS function (evaluating performance of mice subjected to string and T-maze tests), After four weeks of treatment, the mice were sacrificed and blood and liver samples were removed for determination of lipid peroxidation (measuring malondialdehyde content by the thiobarbituric acid method). The treatment with turmeric did not result in any toxic effects on the above physiological, behavioral and biochemical parameters, On the other hand, our data show a decrease in the level of both plasma and liver lipid peroxides, In our opinion, these preliminary data justify further animal investigations on the effects of treatment with this antioxidant not only on lipid peroxidation, but also on atherogenesis and senescence, since, according to the radical theory of aging, they man be linked to peroxidative changes.