Abstract:
Curcumin is a polyphenolic bioactive compound found in the rhizomes of Curcuma longa L.
which has garnered considerable interest due to its diverse medicinal properties. The bioactive
compound is currently being used as a commercial ingredient. In Pakistan not many industries
are using curcumin as an active ingredient in their products despite rich cultivation of Curcuma
longa (turmeric) in Pakistan. This highlights the untapped potential of local turmeric. This study
aims to characterize curcumin extracted from locally cultivated Curcuma longa. A distinctive
aspect of this research lies in the adoption of the concept of “Whole Plant Medicine”, where the
entire turmeric extract was utilized for characterization, rather than isolating pure curcumin.
The primary objectives of this study were to assess the efficiency of various solvents for
curcumin extraction and to analyze the structural composition and chemical profile of different
turmeric extracts. In this research, curcumin was extracted from Pakistani local turmeric using
a Soxhlet apparatus with four different solvents (methanol, ethanol, acetone, and glycerol), and
its chemical characterization was performed through UV spectrophotometry, FTIR
spectroscopy, and GC-MS analysis. Among the solvents used, methanol exhibited optimal
results, with a distinct absorption peak observed at 425 nm in the UV spectrum, indicative of
curcumin's presence. Subsequently, FTIR analysis provided insights into the presence of
characteristic functional groups associated with curcumin. GC-MS analysis of the methanol
extract unveiled the presence of potential bioactive compounds with intriguing pharmacology
demonstrating the complexity of the extract's chemical composition. Overall, the findings
revealed that methanol is the most efficient solvent for curcumin extraction. The comprehensive
chemical profile analysis of the extracts exhibited the diverse array of phytochemicals present
in Pakistani turmeric, underscoring its remarkable significance in the field of natural medicine
