Revealing Changes in Curcumin Bioavailability using Vitamin C as an Enhancer by HPLC-MS/MS

Background: Curcumin (CUR), a natural isolated compound from turmeric, helps in fighting many diseases, but the broad application of curcumin has been limited ascribed to low bioavailability. Objective: The aim of this study is to pursue the enhancement of curcumin bioavailability through coadministration of vitamin C. Methods: Such purpose was achieved through the analysis of curcumin pharmacokinetics by highperformance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization - tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC - ESI - MS/MS). The plasma was separated on a C18 reverse-phase column using acetonitrile and ammonium formate solution (pH 6.5; 2.0 mM) at 0.8 mL/min. MS/MS detection was carried out in negative mode using mass patterns of m/z 367.0 > 216.7 for curcumin and m/z 265.2 > 223.9 for internal standard (honokiol). Results: Successful application of the proposed method in the pharmacokinetic study presented clear changes in key pharmacokinetic parameters, including the growth of AUC (0-t) up to 2.4 times, a 2.2- fold increase of Cmax, 2.2-fold loss of CL, and 1.5-fold diminishment of t1/2. Conclusion: An HPLC-ESI-MS/MS method for the determination of curcumin in rat plasma and validated the improvement of bioavailability of curcumin through co-administration of vitamin C was determined. These changes were reasoned to the inhibition of lipid peroxidation induced by the use of vitamin C. Such a simple strategy is possible to become an alternative for enhancing curcumin efficiency in practice.