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Dietary Bioactive Components

Category: Dietary Bioactive Components (II) (Poster Session)

Dietary Bioactive Components (II) (Poster Session)

(P31-29-26) Dietary Turmeric Phytochemicals and Microbiome-Related Pathways: Systems Analysis Distinguishing Whole Turmeric From Curcuminoids

Monday, July 27, 2026
9:30 AM - 10:30 AM ET
Location: Poster Board D-73
Disclosure(s):
Krit Pongpirul, MD, MPH, PhD.: No relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.


Objectives: To characterize turmeric phytochemicals and identify nutrition-relevant pathways distinguishing whole turmeric from isolated curcuminoids.

Methods: Turmeric phytochemicals were compiled from databases and literature. Network pharmacology identified compound–target interactions and protein–protein interaction networks. Functional enrichment analyses were performed using Gene Ontology and KEGG pathways. Transcriptomic datasets from models exposed to dietary curcumin were analyzed using gene co-expression network and gene set enrichment analyses.

Results: A total of 124 turmeric-derived compounds corresponding to 657 predicted molecular targets were identified. Enrichment analysis revealed pathways related to inflammatory signaling, GPCR signaling, calcium signaling, and synaptic signaling, suggesting roles in gut–brain and microbiome–host interactions. Transcriptomic analysis of 17,892 genes identified 1,032 genes with significant variation, organized into 11 co-expression modules associated with curcumin exposure. Enriched metabolic pathways included sulfur metabolism, glycolysis/gluconeogenesis, steroid hormone biosynthesis, and cytochrome P450 metabolism. Curcumin exposure was also associated with suppression of inflammatory pathways including TNF, NF-κB, and IL-17 signaling, with significant downregulation of the NF-κB pathway (NES = −2.34, FDR < 0.001).

Conclusions: Turmeric shows a multi-target phytochemical profile consistent with a dietary botanical influencing microbiome, immune, and metabolic pathways. These findings highlight nutritional differences between whole turmeric and isolated curcuminoids and support further investigation of turmeric in diet–microbiome interactions.

Funding Sources: Thailand Science Research and Innovation (TSRI); National Science, Research and Innovation Fund (Thailand); Chulalongkorn University (Second Century Fund and Graduate Scholarship Programme).