Researchers from the University of Illinois College of Engineering, US have developed a way of delivering curcumin so that it can be effective as a therapeutic agent for cancer.
Although curcumin’s anti-cancer effect is already known to scientists, its full effect cannot be utilized due to its poor solubility in water.
The team has thus developed a sophisticated metallocyclic complex using platinum to enable curcumin’s solubility.
Althought the scientists have so far only tested the new delivery method for curcumin, the method is likely to prove effective at delivering other anti-cancer agents.
The team also hopes to prove that the technique will be effective against cancer stem cells.