Abstract
Women face unique pathologies and challenges related to the female genital tract (FGT), including vaginal infections and gynecologic cancers. Vaginal infections faced by women include bacterial vaginosis (BV), vulvovaginal candidiasis (VC), and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Curcumin, a component of the dietary spice turmeric, has immense biological properties, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory/immunomodulatory, and anticancer effects. It has no side effects and is well-tolerated, making it an ideal treatment modality highly desired by women. Recently, our laboratory showed, for the first time ever, that curcumin exhibits a spermicidal and broad-spectrum microbicidal activity against several species of bacteria and yeast involved in vaginal infections. Thus, it could provide a novel, non-steroidal contraceptive having both spermicidal and microbicidal properties and can be panacea in women for treatment of several FGT pathologies, including gynecologic cancers.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 113-128 |
| Number of pages | 16 |
| Journal | Frontiers in Bioscience - Elite |
| Volume | 8 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jan 1 2016 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Contraception
- Curcumin
- Female genital tract
- Review
- Vaginal infection
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)
- Immunology and Microbiology(all)
