Studies regarding the uses and biological benefits curcumin have long been paid worldwide attention. Curcumin is a polyphenol found in the turmeric spice, which is derived from the rhizomes of Curcuma longa. Curcumin is a major constituent of the traditional Indian holistic system, Ayurveda, and it is well-known in treating diverse ailments. The aim of this study is to conduct an overview that introduces the traditional uses and therapeutic effects of this valuable phytochemical with more focus on the antitumor results. This review was conducted based on published articles on PubMed, Medline, and Web of Science databases. In this study, the search strategy identified 103 references. Curcumin is found to possess many functions in recent years. It is commonly used for its antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antitumor, anti-diabetic, hypolipidemic, hepatoprotective, and neuroprotective effects. Curcumin has been greatly reported to prevent many diseases through modulating several signaling pathways, and the molecular bases of its anti-tumor bioactivities are imputed to the antiproliferative, anti-inflammatory, pro-apoptotic, anti-angiogenesis and anti-metastasis effects. The antitoxic potential of curcumin against various toxin like Aflatoxin B1 is reported. Although curcumin is a safe and promising phytochemical, it suffers from bioavailability problems that limit its therapeutic efficacy. Thus, various promising strategies allowed for the achievement of multiple and effective varieties of curcumin formulations, such as adjuvants, nanoparticles, liposome, micelle and phospholipid complexes, metal complexes, derivatives, and analogues. In conclusion, curcumin is widely used for myriad therapeutic purposes that trigger its significant value. This short review aims to highlight the known biological activities of curcumin and provide evidence for its antitumor effects.

关于姜黄素的用途和生物学益处的研究长期以来一直受到全世界的关注。姜黄素是姜黄香料中发现的一种多酚，它来源于姜黄的根茎。姜黄素是印度传统整体系统阿育吠陀的主要成分，在治疗各种疾病方面众所周知。这项研究的目的是进行概述，介绍这种有价值的植物化学物质的传统用途和治疗效果，并更多地关注抗肿瘤效果。这篇评论是根据PubMed，Medline和Web of Science数据库上发表的文章进行的。在这项研究中，搜索策略确定了103个参考文献。姜黄素近年来被发现具有许多功能。它通常用于其抗氧化剂，抗菌剂，消炎药，抗肿瘤药，抗糖尿病药，降血脂，肝保护和神经保护作用。姜黄素已被大量报道通过调节几种信号通路来预防多种疾病，其抗肿瘤生物活性的分子基础被归因于抗增殖，抗炎，促凋亡，抗血管生成和抗转移作用。据报道姜黄素对各种毒素如黄曲霉毒素B1具有潜在的抗毒作用。尽管姜黄素是一种安全且有前途的植物化学物质，但它存在生物利用度问题，从而限制了其治疗功效。因此，各种有前景的策略允许获得多种有效的姜黄素制剂，例如佐剂，纳米颗粒，脂质体，胶束和磷脂复合物，金属复合物，衍生物和类似物。结论，姜黄素广泛用于多种治疗目的，可触发其显着价值。这篇简短的综述旨在突出姜黄素的已知生物学活性，并为其抗肿瘤作用提供证据。