Abstract:
Curcumin is a polyphenol that could act as anti-oxidant and anti – inflammation agent.
It is usually isolated from rhizome plants such as turmeric and temulawak. Despite its many favorable properties, curcumin is practically insoluble in water, thus limiting its application. In the present investigation, variables affecting preparation of curcumin-dextrose cocrystal were examined with the aim to increase the solubility of curcumin. The effect of different processing conditions, such as water to dextrose ratio, final heating temperature and water bath temperature to the formation of cocrystal, were studied and the yield and solubility of curcumin – dextrose cocrystal products were analyzed. The morphology of the cocrystals were also analyzed using SEM and fluorescence microscopy. Curcumin – dextrose cocrystals showed a significant
increase in solubility up to 25 mg curcumin per mL water compared to pure curcumin.