Curcumin dispersed with colloidal nano-particles inhibits enteric viruses replication.

Acute gastroenteritis remains one of the most common health problems despite the progress in prevention and vaccination. The options for viral diarrhea therapy are limited and there is the need for effective treatment. Recently a novel form of the nano-dispersed curcumin that is highly bioavailable was described. This form of curcumin was well tolerated by the cells in culture and was rapidly absorbed into the blood plasma after oral administration. We tested the antiviral activity of this curcumin formulation in vitro using several viruses associated with gastrointestinal infections, like astrovirus, norovirus rotavirus, adenovirus, echovirus, and coxackievirus. We did observe strong replication inhibition of all tested viruses. These results suggest that the tested form of curcumin is a promising candidate for a broad-spectrum antiviral drug.