Phytochemical and Biological Investigations of <i>Curcuma longa</i>

Abstract

Seven compounds, turmeronol-A (1), turmeronol-B (2), 3,4-dimethoxycinnamic acid (3), 4-hydroxy-
3-methoxycinnamic acid (4), 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde (5), 2,3,5,6-tetrahydroxyarturmerone (6) and 4-hydroxybisabola-
2,10-diene-9-one (7) have been isolated from the carbon tetrachloride soluble fraction of a methanol extract
of the rhizomes of Curcuma longa. Careful interpretation of the NMR data and comparison with turmeronol A (1)
allowed tentative identification of compound 6 as 2,3,5,6-tetrahydroxy-arturmerone, which appears to be a new
molecule. The n-hexane, carbon tetrachloride and chloroform extractives of the rhizomes when subjected to
antimicrobial screening and brine shrimp lethality bioassay demonstrated mild to moderate antimicrobial activity and
strong cytotoxicity with LC₅₀ value 1.56 μg/ml.

Key words: Curcuma longa; Zingiberaceae; turmeronol-A; turmeronol-B; 2,3,5,6-tetrahydroxy-arturmerone and 4-
hydroxybisabola-2,10-diene-9-one; antimicrobial; cytotoxicity.

DOI: 10.3329/dujps.v8i1.5334

Dhaka Univ. J. Pharm. Sci. 8(1): 39-45, 2009 (June)